


Unconditional

by Xander_The_Undead



Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Body mutilation, Crimes, Dead animals, M/M, Mentions of non-con, Missing Children, Past Brainwashing, Past Rape/Non-con, disturbing images
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2019-10-31 17:49:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 50,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17854310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xander_The_Undead/pseuds/Xander_The_Undead
Summary: Being a superhero is supposed to be the greatest thing in the world, only come to find out some real weird and awful shit can go down when not only the good guys have super powers. Richie and Eddie try to navigate their lives through these crazy events while also trying figure out the mess that is their relationship.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A huge thank you to [theonlytraveler](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theonlytraveler) for helping me with Stan and Bev's powers along with giving me confidence to even write this and to [Honeybeehanlon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItchyToaster) for helping me with Mike's powers.
> 
> For more details on the warnings, please see the end of the work.

If someone had told Richie when he gained his special little talent, that he would someday end up as part of an organization that pledged their lives to saving the world he probably would have laughed. Actually, he probably would have thought it was awesome since he was only six, but that was beside the point.

It was already seven o’clock and Richie had a fine date back at home with his take away Chinese and Netflix, so having to wait for everyone to get their asses to headquarters was annoying. He glanced out the large floor to ceiling windows at the New York City skyline and sighed, wondering if he would be able to convince a certain small brunet to join him tonight afterwards. Richie cringed a little, probably not. Ever since that huge fuck up six months ago, Eddie had been avoiding hanging out alone with him.

“When is this meeting going to start? I’m actually here on time, so why can’t everyone else be?” Richie whined, popping the top to his water bottle and taking a large gulp. He raised an eyebrow at the snort from across the table.

“Why? Cause you’re so busy?” Bev asked, her red curls looking like fire this evening and it was amazing. Riche grinned.

“I’ll have you know, my sweet, that being a radio show host is a full-time job.”

A laugh. “Yeah. On Saturday and Friday nights.”

He flipped her the bird lovingly, taking another chug of his water, wiping his mouth with his sleeve when he finished. “Whatever. Not all of us can be fashion designers by day and strong women by night.”

“Technically,” She pointed at him, her bare arms that were decorated in some kind of fancy bangles were very deceiving for how much power they had. “I’m a strong woman all the time. Powers don’t rest, babe. Besides, you’re just jealous I can lift a semi and you can just move water.”

He tried to glare at her, but the grin on his face ruined any try for irritation. “You bitch.”

His mom always said that he was like a fish in water, they just hadn’t realized how true it was until Maggie Tozier had walked in to check in on her son to find all the water in the tub floating up towards the ceiling. He had to give it to his rents, instead of calling a priest for like an exorcism or something, they took the change in stride. His mom had bought a ton of self-help books to see if any of those methods would help Richie learn to control it while his dad had gone out to find the largest water bottle, he could when they found out that Richie needed to remain constantly hydrated due to his new power.

Growing up with thick heavy glasses, messed up teeth and having to lug almost a gallon of water around with you everywhere wasn’t the greatest. Richie spent most of his junior high years shoved into lockers and being pushed face down in the dirt, never using his powers even when he wanted to because he had promised his parents he wouldn’t. It wasn’t until he shot up suddenly in high school, towering over the other boys easily, and decided to go out for the swim team did things start looking at least a little bit better.

Bucky Beaver had a varsity jacket and apparently that’s all it took.

Maggie said it was cheating.

Went said he was just using his god given talent.

Richie didn’t care as long as he stopped getting his face punched in. 

He glanced over at Mike, reaching out to snag one of the many papers the man had set out, pulling it quickly to himself when he saw Mike try to reach out to grab it back. “Aren’t you supposed to be anti-paper? What being one with the trees and all?”

He ignored Bev’s eye roll for Mike’s smile, it was a beautiful thing, and glanced over the paper in his hand. Ugh. Patrol Assignments. Gross. He would love just one day where he wasn’t put on patrol in Queens.

“That is recycled paper, so no guilt on my part. I’m trying to get the rest of the organization to do the same or at least go paperless.” Mike replied with a shake of his head, snagging the paper back while Richie wasn’t paying attention. “Also, I’m not anti-paper. I just want to try and not be wasteful and if it helps the environment then win win.”

Mike was probably the only person Richie could understand going vegan. He would be put off a lot of meat too when you had the power to literally ask a cow how its morning was. The plant thing was a little much, but Mike had explained that him and nature had an understanding and he could still eat a salad without the trees causing a riot.

Though a tree riot would be fucking hilarious.

All hail our leafy over lords.

Richie hummed at Mike’s answer, shifting to rest his elbows on the large round wooden table and his chin in his hands. “You are too good for this earth, You beautiful sunshine child.”

“I’m only a few months younger than you, Richie.” Mike laughed, then nodded towards the door. “But I’m with you on getting this meeting started. Stan has reservations at this new vegan place that’s supposed to be really good. And not just where they mash a bunch of vegetables together and try to call it some fake meat. They get really creative.”

_Fake meat_ No, that was low hanging fruit. Richie was better than that, but not by much. He slid his glasses back up his nose and grinned widely. “So, tell me Mikey. How does all that vegan stuff work when Stan asks you to beat his me-“

His entire body went cold as ice, the familiar feeling of his stomach wanting to empty itself immediately letting him know that his joke wasn’t appreciated.

“That joke wasn’t funny two years ago and it’s not funny now.” The soft hiss of a voice whispered in his ear, the blinding nausea and feeling of wrongness lasting for only a second longer before Stan moved out from inside him and solidified.

“JESUS STAN!” Richie gasped, hating how his whole body had broken into a cold sweat. “Can you just tell me to shut up like a normal person?! I almost lost my lunch.”

Stan looked smug as he moved to sit next to Mike, happy smile coming to his face when he received a kiss on the cheek from the man. Bev tried to be sympathetic, but then way she covered that laugh told Richie she was a traitor. If Stan’s cup of water just happened to tip over and spill a little into the blond’s lap, well that had nothing to do with Richie.

The Denbrough duo walked in literally four minutes after the scheduled time, which was hilarious because for being their fearless leader Bill sucked at keeping time. Beverly gave a low whistle at the red head’s wrinkled tux and Richie couldn’t help but grin at the flush that spread across Bill’s face. Richie waggled his eyebrows suggestively, biting his thumb as he gave Bill a very obvious once over. “Isn’t that the same tux you had on yesterday when you took Agent Phillips to-“

“Alright!” Bill announced loudly, taking the suit jacket off and slinging it across the back of his own chair, Silver glinting in the light in the shape of a large belt buckle attached to his belt. Georgie snorted as he moved into his own seat next to his brother, the teen not looking nearly as undead today. Must have gotten a good non-summoning sleep last night. “We can get this meeting started now that everyone is here. First, I need to-“

“Wait!” Richie shot up straight in his chair, frowning at the look of confusion on everyone’s face. “We’re missing two people.”

Bill shook his head, clearly not appreciating the interruption. “No, we’re not. Do you not remember last week?”

Richie tried to think back, but all he remembered was that Eddie had come in straight from work and has a big old grease smear on his face. It was fucking adorable and had distracted Richie from the entire meeting. He tugged on his dark curls before giving a shrug. “Can I buy a vowel?”

Bill sighed. “Ben said he had to finish the last touches on a building so he wouldn’t make it and Eddie is on a-“

“Work!”

All eyes turned to look at Bev, but she just nodded as if her outburst had been completely normal. She fixed Bill with a weird look that made Richie suspicious and she tapped a hand against the table. “Eddie is at work.”

Bill seemed confused for a minute before having some kind of ah- ha moment and nodded. “That’s right. He’s at work. Some big...car thing.”

“Oh okay. That doesn’t sound super fake.” Richie replied sarcastically and scowled, not liking the feeling of being left behind or secrets being kept from him. When he glanced around, no one seemed to want to look him in the eye except Stan and when the blond gave him the smallest eye roll Richie knew something was up.

“Because it is fake. Everyone needs to stop lying to him.”

“Stan!” Bev shot out of her seat.

“He’s not at work.”

“Babe...” Mike tried quietly.

“He’s on a date.”

 

* * *

 

Eddie took a sip of his wine because he didn’t have anything really to say to Jake’s story. He felt bad for being bored by the tale of his date’s dry-cleaning fiasco, but honestly how could a marinara stain be that interesting? He really needed to not complain here. Jake was good looking, nice, kind of funny and he knew how to treat a person in the first date.

_Not that cheese burgers and foosball was a bad first date_.

Nope. Stop. Focusing on Jake.

Jake smiled, his teeth beautifully straight and white, not a single crooked or bucked tooth anywhere and Eddie hated that that was disappointing to him. _Come on, Eddie. Get it together. This is the first date you’ve been on since.... for a while. Don’t ruin this!_ He jumped a little when Jake reached out to touch his sleeve, cursing himself for not paying attention to the conversation and was glad when his date didn’t seem to notice.

“Enough about me. So, you’re a really attractive mechanic. And you said you grew up in Maine?” Jake folded his hands under his chin and actually looked interested in hearing about the boring state of Maine. There was really nothing, unless people liked light houses.

“Ah,” Eddie nodded a little, placing his glass down and refusing to give into his nerves and drink the whole glass in one go. “Yeah. Good ol’ Maine.”

Jake laughed. “So, do you eat lobster and clam chowder everyday there?”

_That wasn’t even funny._ Eddie told himself to shut the fuck up and gave a small slightly forced laugh, eyeing his wine again. “Ha. Not really, but isn’t that the dream?”

“What do your parents do?”

“Oh,” Eddie bit his lip a little awkwardly. “My mom doesn’t work, she kinda-“ Eddie stopped, hating having to explain everything about his family because it was just so messed up. “And my dad...he’s not with us anymore.”

Screw not drinking.

Eddie reached over and grabbed his glass, drinking down the rest of it and hoping to God a waiter came by to ask for a refill. It’s not like he was _lying_ to Jake about his family, his mother really didn’t do anything for work and instead lived off her disability checks and his dad...well. So, Frank Kaspbrak didn’t really die. He instead was summoned back to his home planet from God knows where and they hadn’t seen him since Eddie was four. He also didn’t need to go into how he had been _told_ that his father had been dead and since Eddie wasn’t exactly fully human his mother had this crazy irrational fear that one day Eddie would leave her for the stars too.

So, she lied.

Sick sick sick. Sick little Eddie who can’t do a thing.

Eddie can’t come outside because he’s too sick. Eddie can’t join the team because he’s too delicate. Eddie can’t go play with those boys because he might get hurt. Eddie can’t, Eddie can’t, Eddie can’t. Blah blah blah blah blah.

She twisted everything, made him so scared to even touch grass. GRASS! And he had believed every word because she was his Mother and she only wanted to protect him and keep him safe. That’s what mothers were supposed to do for their children, at least normal mothers. He probably would have gone on believing her his whole life if it hadn’t been for puberty.

When his body started glowing with the energy of a thousand suns, it started to get a little hard for Sonia Kaspbrak to lie her way through another illness.

Everything he had thought to be wrong with him had turned out to be his body trying to come to terms with itself, which he had to give it because really having two very different species DNA twisted up inside someone could make anyone go a little crazy. But his mother had known what he was, known that that he was different and had tried to keep it from him. Tried to tell him he was broken and wouldn’t make it without her. Keep him in that small dark house with her, probably until she died, and he was left alone not knowing how to function without her.

Eddie shuddered at the idea of what he could have become had his powers not made themselves known and frowned when he felt the left-over stains of her abuse in his pocket in the shape of a hand sanitizer bottle.

At Jake’s fallen face Eddie knew he’d ruined it by bringing up a dead parent. He waved his hand a little to try and shoo away any bad thoughts or feelings Jake might be having. “It was a long time ago, I don’t even really remember him so...”

God, that sounded worse.

“I’m sorry, Eddie.”

“Seriously, don’t be. Come on, let’s talk about something better. How’s your car running after we fixed the carburetor?”

Eddie relaxed when that seemed to shift Jake’s thoughts and mood. Cars he could talk about, he could talk cars for days and there were no sad childhood stories or bad past relationship drama when it came to cars. They had just been served their entrée, a beautiful medium rare filet and mushrooms for Eddie, when a deafening boom went off.

Eddie moved himself over to Jake out of reflex, covering the other’s body with his own and pulling him down under the table as the windows to the restaurant shattered along with the lights, plunging the restaurant into darkness. Eddie waited a breath before moving his head out from under the table to see what the cause had been, scowling when he saw a familiar flash of black and yellow.

“Fucking Huggins.” He muttered under his breath, getting ready to move so he could find a place to get dressed before he felt a firm hold on his arm. Eddie turned, ready to snap at the other man from keeping him from his job but softened when he saw the look of terror on Jake’s face. “Jake, let go.”

“Are you insane?! You can’t go out there!”

_Oh my god_. Eddie resisted the urge to just push him off, instead placing a gentle hand on the one holding his arm. “I’m just going to check something. I’ll be right back. I promise.”

_Liar._ How did people in his line of work date civilians?

“Eddie-“ Jake didn’t even get the words out before Eddie was pulling his arm away and crouching low to the ground as he made his way as quickly as he could to the restrooms.

“Of fucking course. On the one night I have plans.” He hissed as he locked himself in one of the large fancy stalls and started to strip. Shucking his pants and shirt as fast as he could, Eddie was soon in his red and gold spandex suit, the gold star across his chest looking even brighter in the bathrooms soft lighting. He grumbled as he fished out his communicator, slipping the small piece into his ear as he heard the familiar sound of Bill barking orders.

“Ranger. This is Supernova. I’m at the site now.”

_“EDS!”_ Eddie cringed as he slipped his mask on over his face. _God, please don’t send Richie._ That was probably the last thing he needed right now tonight.

_“Codenames only on this line, Riptide!”_ Bill snapped. _“Supernova! Riptide, Power House and I are on our way to you. Do not engage Belch too much until we are there do give you back up. Do you copy?”_

Ugh! Of course, they were sending Richie.  At least with Bev and Bill there, he wouldn’t be completely alone with him and Bev was better at handling the press anyway. Eddie rolled his eyes, biting back any snarky comment about Bill not trusting him to go full power and pressed the call button in his ear piece before pushing his way out of the stall. “Roger that. I’m heading in.”

He couldn’t just _walk out_ of the bathroom, people would wonder why Supernova had suddenly come from there and go sniffing. He also couldn’t exactly just carry his shoes and clothes with him in to battle, so he was left with only one other option. Eddie sighed and silently apologized to the restaurant, hoping they had insurance as he closed his eyes and focused. He made his hands into fists as he felt the warmth of his power all around him and pushed it down into his hands. Bright golden light shot out from his fists towards the bathroom’s back wall, the brick not standing a chance against the white-hot heat of his powers as it melted away, leaving a decent sized hole for Eddie to slip out through.

The street was destroyed, which was bound to happen when it had an asshole who had a supersonic voice going around fucking burping and yelling. Power must have been out for at least a mile because everywhere Eddie looked the only light they got was from the large skyscrapers in the distance and the moon over head. Eddie growled when he saw Huggins grab a young woman and hoist her in the air, zooming over to them in a flash of gold. He didn’t even give the man a warning, instead just jabbing the him in the back of the head as hard as he could, reaching out to catch the woman as Huggins yelled and threw her in order to grab at his head.

Eddie flew a far enough distance that it was safe to set the woman down, nodding quickly at her rush of thanks and sighing when she clung to him a little too long.

It wasn’t long before Eddie heard the loud rumble of Silver, seeing Bill pull up on her in her motorcycle shape and man was he glad. It wasn’t that he couldn’t handle Huggins, but Huggins on top of damage control and perimeter checks was hard as hell on his own.

“Took you long enough!” He yelled down at the other, watching as Silver melted down and formed into a sword in Bill’s hand.

“Sorry!” Bill yelled up at him before brandishing Silver like some kind of hero on the high seas. His black and yellow suit with the leather jacket over it making Eddie feel a little jealous he couldn’t look that cool in his own suit. “Would’ve been here sooner, but there was another emergency over near Staten Island.”

Eddie could hear the roar of waves and he quickly glanced over to see a large wave made up of the disgusting Hudson river water coming through the streets neatly, making sure not to hit any cars or people. Aw, fuck.

“I can go to the Island if you need me there! It’s just Huggins.”

Bill shot him a disapproving look, knowing exactly what Eddie was trying to pull and Eddie deflated a little. Soon the large wave came to them, shrinking dramatically as all the water moved up over the heads of buildings and back into the Hudson River. In its wet wake stood Bev who was dry as a bone in her beautiful blue and red suit, her green eyes looking even brighter with her blue mask on and Richie.

God, Richie looked so dumb in his suit. Eddie loved it.

Instead of spandex like everyone else, because God forbid, he follow the norm, Richie had decided on a dark blue jumpsuit, which he then just shoved into black combat boots. How he found one that actually fit his freakishly tall body was a mystery. At least he wore an actual mask, even though his nest of black curls was a god damn give away to anyone who looked at Riptide and the giant ass billboard of Richie ‘Record’ Tozier. He had his bandoliers filled with water capsules slung across his broad chest and Eddie wanted to die.

Looking at Richie with any kind of lust made Eddie feel skeevy and he turned away when Richie gave him a small wave.

“Alright, Ranger. Got a plan?” Bev asked over the com.

“Yep.” Bill voice crackled a little. “Hit ‘em hard and fast. No mercy.”

Richie laughed. “My favorite plan.”

 

* * *

 

Richie watched as they loaded Huggins into the large armored truck, his mouth covered with a steal gag and clasp. He had a comment on the tip of his tongue, but when he noticed Eddie wave to Bill and get ready to take off, he had more important things to worry about.

“Hey, Nova!” He watched as Eddie froze, turning stiffly to look over his shoulder at Richie with a look of fear. Jesus Christ. Richie had to remind himself not to get annoyed at that, Eddie had the right to feel how he did after what happened, but it was still hard when the guy barely gave him the time of day. He took a deep breath and jogged over to the man in red. He stopped slowly in front of the other and offered Eddie a small smile, which Eddie didn’t return and now Richie didn’t know what to do.

They stood in front of each other in silence, Eddie meeting his eyes every now and then only to look away or back down at the ground. God, this was awkward.

“I, uh...I heard you had a date.” He really didn’t mean for it to come out sounding so hurt, but just the thought made his eyes sting a little bit. He had known that Eddie ignoring his calls and basically freezing him out had meant that whatever they had had originally was no more, but the fact that Eddie was out there with someone else made the truth so much more painful.

“Oh,” Eddie licked his lips and refused to meet his eyes, staring down at the ground like it was the most fucking interesting thing he’s ever seen. “So, you heard about that.”

_At least look at me!_

“So, you were trying to keep it from me after all.” His voice hardened, the annoyance seeping out and mixing with the hurt. “You know, even if you don’t want to be with me, doesn’t mean I should be kept in the dark.”

Eddie’s head shot up and the look of pure sadness and frustration almost made Richie want to take a step back. “You _know_ that’s not true.”

Richie wanted to touch him. Pull him into his arms, hold him and tell him that it was okay, but it wasn’t. None of this was. “Okay...okay. But can you stop acting like I have the plague? I know that things since then haven’t- I feel like I haven’t actually seen you in months because you keep running off every chance you get.”

“Richie...” _Oh_. Real names while in costume and in public. Apparently, this talk was more distressing for the smaller man than Richie had thought, and he then did reach out, taking Eddie’s hand and rubbing his thumb over gloved knuckles.  At the contact, Eddie let out a shaky breath and Richie was scared that the other was going to cry right then and there, but then Eddie seemed to remember where they were and pulled his hand away. The vulnerable Eddie was gone in an instant, replaced by the impassive Supernova and Richie wanted to scream.

“We’ll talk about it later.”

“Sure we will.”

A small hurt look flashed in Eddie’s eyes before it was gone and he took off into the air in a blaze of gold, leaving Richie standing on the torn apart street feeling just as broken.

_“What do you remember, Richie?” Bill asked as Doctor Jensen, the team’s doctor, shined a light in his eyes to check for damage._

_Richie frowned, hating being without his glasses or contacts as he tried not to flinch away from the light then squinted at the auburn blur that he assumed was Bill. “Um, I remember finishing my paperwork after fighting those giant robots. The ones who like to spit out acid and got Stan on the leg? Is he okay by the way?”_

_He tried to look around for a blond blur, but when Bill said his name in that no-nonsense tone, Richie knew he needed to pay close attention to what he was being asked. He shifted a bit on the uncomfortable bed, the mattress so thin the metal dug into his ass and sighed as he continued to think back on his day. “Okay, paper work, which I did finish by the way. I just want to point out.”_

_“Richie!”_

_“Keep your pants on, Denbrough! I finished paperwork then went on my merry way to pick Eddie up for our date. Date numbero dos.”_

_He had planned the whole thing, ready to sweep the little space nugget off his feet since their first date had kind of been a bust due to rain and they ended up just back at Richie’s with burgers and foosball. But, oh, Eddie had kissed him so sweetly that night, whispering to Richie how much he had thought about this over the years and Richie was even more gone than he thought._

_He heard a pained gasp, knowing it was Eddie and quickly tried to reach for his glasses, thankful when Bev handed them to him. When everything was back in focus, he ignored all the looks of worry to look at Eddie and his stomach went cold at the expression on the man’s face._

_Eddie looked sick._

_“Eds?” He started to reach out but pulled back like he was burned when Eddie looked even more upset at the gesture. What was going on? What was wrong with Eddie? Bill stepped forward once the doctor had deemed Richie alright and placed a heavy hand on Richie’s shoulder._

_“Rich...that was three months ago.”_

_He stared at Bill for a minute before shaking his head slowly, a small hysterical sounding laugh creeping up his throat. “No. No. It was just last night. I remember I-“_

_He stopped dead when Bill held up his phone to show the date. August twenty-fifth. Two months and twenty-three days after when him and Eddie were supposed to go out to the aquarium. He tried hard to push down the panic that was starting to grow, a soft whine coming from his throat as he wracked his brain to remember something from that night or any night from the last three months. “W-Wait. I don’t understand.”_

_“You were under Henry’s hypnosis.” Bill tried to explain calmly, probably noticing how Richie’s breathing was starting to pick up. “He used you to help him gain access inside headquarters.”_

_“No. No. No! I know better than to-“ Richie tried to argue, but he could distinctly remember when they had last fought Henry ‘Hypno’ Bowers, how Richie had looked in his eyes for just a second to long._

_Apparently, that was all it took._

_“Jesus, I’m...I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.” He felt arms go around his neck and red curls in his face, quickly hugging Bev back as she told him it wasn’t his fault. He took a deep breath, the smell of her soft floral perfume helping a little to calm him down.  He lifted his head and tried to find Eddie but found that the man had left the room which hurt more than he wanted to admit. He needed Eddie._

_“Where’s Eddie? I need to-“_

_“Richie...”_

_He glanced down at Bev’s teary eyes, tightening his arms around her to comfort her from...what? He didn’t know, but Bev should never be crying. She sniffed a little and shook her head before continuing. “You need to let him be right now.”_

_He felt a stab of cold dread in his stomach. Oh god. What had he done? What did Henry make him do?! He was going to murder that fucking sadistic asshole. “What did I do to him?”_

_She shook her head slowly, her earrings making the softest tinkling sound._

_“He did a really good job pretending to be you, Richie. No one could tell, not even Eddie. You guys...” She looked so damn sad. Richie hadn’t even noticed that the other team members had left to give them space. “You guys were still dating and looked so in love or at least Eddie was. Everything seemed so normal and um...” her breath hitched. "You guys-or he- God. Eddie told me you guys had slept together. Multiple times."_

_Richie couldn’t hear anymore; a loud blaring alarm was going off in his head as he felt his stomach shift violently. Bev held his hair as he threw up all over the floor of the sick bay._

 

* * *

 

Eddie pinched the bridge of his nose tightly trying will away the headache he could feel coming on. He had stayed up all night trying to decide if talking to Richie was actually a good idea or not. A little past three am he had picked up his phone and typed out a quick text, pressing send before he could chicken out or second guess himself and tossing the phone on his bed.

He hadn’t excepted Richie to text back immediately, it was extremely late after all, but after an hour of nothing Eddie’s anxiety started to get the best of him. Had Richie finally given up? Was he done with Eddie? It wasn’t like Eddie had given him much of a reason to keep trying to be friends or whatever they could salvage after that shit. He had decided to take a shower and try to get some sleep, just slipping out of his clothes when he heard the soft chime of his phone. He absolutely did (not) dive for his phone and he absolutely did (not) slide across his comforter, off the bed and land with a loud thump in a heap of limbs on his floor. He couldn’t help the small smile that spread on his face when he saw the reply from Richie.

**_Eddie:_ ** _Would you want to go for coffee tomorrow after the team meeting?_

**_Richie:_ ** _Sure. You gotta buy._

**_Eddie:_ ** _Oh yeah?_

**_Richie:_ ** _Yeah. Can’t let you think I’m too easy._

**_Eddie:_ ** _You have NEVER been easy, Tozier._

**_Richie:_ ** _Only easy where it counts._

**_Richie:_ ** _(_ _☞_ _͡°_ _͜ʖ ͡°)_ _☞_

**_Richie:_ ** _So, you really mean it?_

**_Eddie:_ ** _???? The buying? Yeah?_

**_Richie:_ ** _No dipshit. The talking._

**_Eddie:_ ** _oh. Yeah. I mean, I want to try._

**_Richie_ ** _: I’ll take try._

Eddie hadn’t been able to even try and sleep after that, his mind too keyed up on how coffee with Richie might go. His head now pounded, and his eyes burned every time he closed them, but it was nothing his third cup of coffee wouldn’t fix, and he poured himself another cup as he waited for the other team members.

“This seat taken?” Eddie jumped at the soft voice, whipping his head around to stare at Richie who looked so god damn uncertain. Richie should never look like that, especially when it came to Eddie, and he quickly nodded his head. Deep hurt flashed across Richie’s face before he turned his head quickly away and cleared his throat. “Oh. Sorry. I’ll just go sit by Bev then.”

Huh? Oh! Eddie scrambled realizing what he had done, not meaning that, and reached out to grab Richie’s sleeve.

“No! That’s not what I meant! Sorry! I nodded because I wanted you to, not because it was taken. I didn’t mean for...ugh.” He closed his mouth and with his hold on Richie gave a small weak tug on his sleeve to get him to move closer to the chair next to Eddie. He couldn’t even look at Richie now that his face was flaming in embarrassment but didn’t let go of the other man until he was sure Richie wouldn’t leave for another seat. “Sorry...it was a late night.”

Richie was quiet for a moment, then slowly sat down in the chair next to Eddie. When he felt a tap at his elbow, Eddie glanced up to see Richie giving him a soft smile and it made Eddie’s chest ache. “Yeah, I figured what with you texting me at ungodly hours of the night. Your mom got a little jealous, but I told her it was only you.”

A ‘your mom joke’. Oh my god.

Eddie couldn’t tell if it was relief at something normal between them or just being exhausted, but he let out a loud shrill laugh that even surprised Richie before the other started laughing with him. God, it felt so good to laugh with Richie again, to just be with Richie again, and hopefully after their talk they could be friends again. Eddie didn’t dare hope for more, but he couldn’t imagine his life completely without Richie, so he clung to the hope of friendship with all he had.

They continued the easy talk until Bill gained everyone’s attention, ready to start the meeting. If Eddie shifted his chair a little closer to Richie’s while everyone was distracted, then that was just for him to know.

“We have an unfortunate mission given to us today. There have been eleven missing children in a matter of a month.” Bill spread the missing children posters out across the table, their sweet faces causing a weird spike of unease in Eddie as he looked at them. “Police have no leads and there seems to be a new one going missing almost every day.”

Stan reached out to take one of the posters, frowning deeply as he looked at the little girl. Katie Maison, age nine, missing for six days. “I don’t mean to sound awful, but why are they giving this to us? Isn’t this something for the special crimes’ unit or something? This is New York, kids go missing a lot unfortunately.”

Everyone seemed uncomfortable with Stan’s words, but no one could deny what he said was true. Their city was filled with the worst kind of people, children snatchers being one of those kinds of people, but Bill’s grim expression told them that this wasn’t just a random spike its kidnappings. “At first that’s what the police thought, until they noticed that there was something each case had in common.”

Ben gulped. “And that is?”

“In every kid’s room there’s left a calling card of sorts, even if the child wasn’t last seen in their room. Police didn’t notice it until it started happening on every case.” Bill replied, digging through his stack of folders and pulling out a small stack of photos. Eddie had to turn the poster nearest to him over, the child’s eyes making him feel queasy with the idea that she could be locked up somewhere, scared and alone. There were bad people and then there were people who messed with little kids and those people were just evil.

Richie’s face twisted in disgust. “So, we have a serial kidnapper on our hands?”

“Eleven kids is a lot. Where would you even be able to keep that many?”  Mike asked voice hard and angry, Stan’s hand moving to cover his on the table.

“That’s if they are even keeping them alive.” Georgie whispered softly, everyone giving him horrified look even though they had all been thinking it. If anyone could talk about death freely without anyone getting mad it was Georgie. The boy had been there and back. “What’s the calling card, Bill?”

Bill flipped a picture down on the table. It was a crime scene photo, a young girl’s room covered in pink, glitter and princess, normally sweet, but under the circumstances seemed eerie.

Then they saw it, off to the side a large bright red balloon was tied to the headboard of the bed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Richie and Eddie have their talk while Stan and Mike discover something disturbing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter just kept getting longer and longer! I hope you all enjoy! 
> 
> Warnings for this Chapter at the end of the work.

Bev took a deep breath and let it out slowly, feeling every muscle relax as the warm sun beat down on her bare back, fixing her aviators to watch Ben better as she laid out on her towel. Ben using his powers to build had to be one of the coolest things Bev had ever seen, grinning and wiggling her shoulders a little when a large sheet of metal rose up into the air. Ben stood a few feet away, face turned up towards the floating metal piece before raising his hand and twisting his fingers a little. Bev grinned when the sheet folded as if it were paper into an almost fan like shape, Ben having it float down and placing it amongst the other pieces. “Very sexy, Sweetie.”

Ben’s ears went a little pink, but otherwise he gave her an easy smile. “Will you let Kay know that?”

Bev raised an eyebrow. “Oh? And why should I? Destroy the coffeemaker again?”

Ben had the grace too look a little guilty. “I’m guessing you noticed.”

“Babe, when you destroy something and throw it out, you’re supposed to take _out_ the trash.” Bev pointed out, glad her boyfriend was on the right side of crime because honestly, he would have sucked at being on the other side.

“It’s not my fault!” Ben turned to toward her, hands up in the air while two more sheets floated up with them. “I had been up all night working on the design for the Rody building and she came up behind me for a morning kiss. You know she makes no noise when she moves. It scared me.”

Ben did not look impressed at all with the loud witch cackle that came out of his girlfriend’s mouth and he turned back to his metal origami with a sigh. It took Beverly a bit before she could quit giggling completely, grinning wide at the fact that they could now count that as Ben’s sixth home appliance destruction. They both knew Kay wasn’t actually upset with it, they could afford a new one, but Kay always said it was the principal of the matter. Bev pushed up on her arms, sliding into a cross legged position as she reached over to grab her bra and shirt. Man, she loved Ben’s private open-air studio.

“You all done sun bathing?” Ben asked, looking back and giving a lingering look that made her want to show off a little, but she had a meeting she had to get to.

“Yeah. If I stay out too long, I’ll freckle like crazy.”

“We love when you’re freckled like crazy.”

Bev pursed her lips at that, but a smile won out in the end remembering last night how Kay and Ben had been on a mission to try and kiss every one of her freckles. The mission had been derailed quickly and Bev’s cheeks heated at the wonderful memory. She slipped her arms through the straps, sliding them up her shoulders after making sure she hadn’t burned and reached behind to hook her bra as she hummed. “How do you think Richie and Eddie’s coffee date is going?”

“I think if Eddie heard you call it a date he’d fly off and become one with the sun.” Bev rolled her eyes at that, unfortunately knowing it was true. “But I’m hoping it goes well. Lord knows we need those two to figure out how to be around each other again, at least for the world’s sake.”

Bev watched as his shoulders slumped a little, getting up from her spot to walk over to him and wrap her arms around him. Ben had always been the more sensitive of the group, wanting Richie and Eddie to work out almost as much as the other two had. When they had gone out on their original date Ben had been so excited, telling Kay and her that he knew things were going to go well because they obviously loved each other. It had been sweet. Ben had been so upset when he’d learned what Bowers had done to their friends, Bev had honestly been worried about him violating the no killing policy.

_Not that Eddie hadn’t already tried._

“I want them to work out too.” She whispered against his shoulder, rocking so that his larger body had to sway with hers in what she knew he found soothing. “They’ll figure themselves out, Ben. I mean, I know they’re like five when it comes to emotional honesty, but they love each other. Even if the endgame is just friends.”

She felt him take a deep breath, turning around to slip his arms around her waist and give her a soft kiss. “Thank you.”

Bev smiled, her heart lifting a little as they pressed their foreheads together and just smiled at one another for a while. She pulled away with a gentle tap to his cheek and went to go pick her shirt up off the grass, slipping it over her head and dusting it off. “Make sure you’re home by five, okay? Kay said she wants to cook tonight, so maybe bring in that bottle of white she really likes and my favorite?”

“Muirwood Chardonnay and Pabst?”

Bev let out a happy groan and moved back over to kiss him once more. “You are truly the best man. You know your ladies so well.”

She grinned at Ben’s full belly laugh, pressing a kiss to his hand before she left.

 

* * *

 

Richie licked his chapped lips as he stared at himself in the mirror of the coffee house bathroom, gripping the sink tightly for balance. He hadn’t been able to sleep after Eddie’s text, so the bags hidden under the frames of his glasses were horrendous and his hair was flatter than usual, the springier curls near the nape of his neck looking weird against the loose almost wave curls near the front. God, he looked like shit and he was supposed to sit across from Eddie and talk about _them_ while looking like this. Bill had called Eddie over to discuss something after the meeting, so Richie and Eddie decided to just meet each other at the coffee house in about an hour, but Richie had arrived thirty minutes early so he could prepare himself for whatever happened. He’d wanted this so badly for months and now that it was about to happen, he felt like he was going vomit in the sink from nerves.

“Calm down, Tozier. It’s not like he’s going to quit the team or something.” If Eddie was going to do that, he would have already done it. This was going to go better than the first time he had tried to talk to Eddie, it absolutely had to. For starters, Richie wouldn’t be cornering Eddie and trying to force him to talk about what had happened.

Richie had been in such a blind panic to salvage whatever he could of their relationship he hadn’t even thought about what Eddie might have been feeling. He had yelled and begged and cried, hoping that this thing they had finally figured out wasn’t gone before he even had the chance to experience it, but pushing hadn’t worked. All he had managed to do was make Eddie close up to him and run hiding anytime he was near, which should have prepared him for when Eddie finally answered his numerous texts and phone calls with ‘I can’t do this’, but it didn’t. For six months Eddie kept promising that someday, when he was ready, they would talk, and Richie had believed him for the first four months. After a handful of awkward excuses and Eddie being too busy to get time with Richie even though he knew the other had hung out with the rest of the team, Richie had no more illusions.

They were done.

Which was why he had been so surprised when Eddie had reached out last night. Eddie was finally ready to go through this with him and he needed a cool head going into this, no pushing of his feelings on to Eddie and spooking him, no irritation or anger over being ignored and no one noticing that he hadn’t been in his own body for three months. None of that. The slate needed to be clean if they were going to be able to work through this.

Richie nodded to himself, sighing and reaching into his pocket to let his fingers run along the smooth cords of the bracelet inside. He squeezed it tightly before letting go and turning towards the door, ready to do this now.

That is until he saw Eddie sitting at one of the small tables by the window, restless hands moving around the large cup of tea he had apparently ordered while Richie was giving himself a pep talk and wearing _that_. He didn’t remember Eddie wearing it during the meeting and Richie didn’t know if he should feel happy or irritated at the worn brown bomber jacket the other wore, patches from all over the world sewn neatly on the back and arms. Eddie had to remember that was Richie’s, that he had given it to the alien a year ago when they had gotten stuck in an icy tundra made up by the wannabe villain of the week, Eddie swearing he wasn’t cold, but Richie had given it up anyway and had never gotten it back. Not that he’d ever wanted it back, getting a thrill every time he saw Eddie walk around with it on.

But now it made him feel depressed.

_Stop. Stop. Clean slate. Come on._

He put on his best smile and walked over, giving a small wave when Eddie looked up, a nervous smile coming to his lovely face as he gestured for Richie to sit. “Did you order anything to drink?”

“Ah,” Richie gave a small humorless laugh as he sat down, shaking his head at Eddie’s question. “No. I don’t think I could actually keep anything down right now I’m so nervous. I don’t wanna hork all over you and the table right now.”

“I and everyone here thank you for your consideration.” Eddie replied and they shared a small smile before it became awkward again, both looking away.

“So,” Richie started, placing his hands palm down on the table so he wouldn’t pick his cuticles to death. “We should talk.”

“Yes.” Eddie nodded. “We should.”

There was another awkward silence and Richie sighed, deciding just to jump in if Eddie wasn’t going to. “I’ll go first, if you don’t mind.”

He didn’t wait for Eddie to agree or not, staring down at the table so he didn’t have to look Eddie in the eyes as he pushed through with what he needed to say. “I want to say I’m sorry, for everything. I’m sorry I messed and let him do that to me. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to resist it or fight it and I’m sorry that he-“ _Oh God._ “Touched you without you knowing it wasn’t me. God, Eddie I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to-“

He froze when he felt Eddie cover one of his hands with his own, glancing up quickly to see the other look like he was about to burst into tears. “Eds?”

Eddie shook his head and it took him a moment to compose himself enough so that he could speak. When he did, he gave Richie a stern look, hand taking Richie’s in his and holding it tight. “Do _not_ apologize, Richie. None of it was your fault and I never thought it was.”

“You don’t?” Eddie gave another shake of his head and Richie frowned. “Then...why did you ignore me? I thought...I thought you couldn’t be around me cause of what he had done to you in my body.”

Richie wanted to complain when Eddie pulled his hand away from him, placing both in his lap under the table and suddenly going pale. He was quiet for a while, so long that Richie thought that this was it and Eddie had decided that talking wasn’t going to happen again, but Eddie surprised him when he glanced up and muttered something. Richie leaned forward, tilting his head toward the other so he could hear better. “I’m sorry, come again? I can’t hear you.”

Eddie pursed his lips tightly, then took a deep breath before letting out a soft sigh. “I slept with you when you had no way of consenting, Richie. I basically-“

Eddie stopped, looking sick as he swallowed down the word even though Richie knew exactly what he had been about to say. Richie couldn’t really believe this, and he pushed down the urge to bang on the table in frustration, knowing any kind of negative thing like that right now would be extremely unhelpful. “You ignored me because you felt guilty? Eddie, you had no idea.”

“Exactly!” Richie jumped at the outburst, glancing around to find other people in the coffee shop giving them strange looks, though Eddie didn’t seem to notice. He kept his angry gaze pinned on Richie and he had no idea how to react to that. “I had _no_ _idea_. I had no clue it wasn’t you in there. I’ve been your friend for ten years, back when we started this team and I didn’t even notice that something had happened to you. I was too wrapped up in being with you that I couldn’t tell it wasn’t you. I failed at being a boyfriend and being a friend.”

Richie stared at Eddie in stunned silence, the idea of Eddie distancing himself because he was wracked with guilt had never once occurred to him. He wished they had decided to talk somewhere more private because he just wanted to hug the man across from him, make sure he never looked so distressed ever again. Richie swallowed loudly and risked reaching across the table to take hold of Eddie’s sleeve.

“You didn’t fail, Eddie. No one else knew.”

“That’s horrible.” Richie felt panic when Eddie’s breath hitched, tears welling up in his giant brown eyes and slipped down his cheeks. “ _I_ should have. I should have because I love you.”

Richie had no idea it was possible to be both heartbroken and extremely happy at the same time, but somehow, he managed it. He had always known he loved Eddie, even when they had first started the team, something had been special about the smaller man who was only half-human. Their first date had been when Richie had confirmed those feelings, knowing that no matter what he wanted Eddie by his side and no one else, but now that was all messed up, wasn’t it? He felt his stomach turn a little and tried to think of what to say to that, anything at all when Eddie looked at him like he was scared.

“You don’t have to say anything, Rich.” Eddie whispered, causing Richie to let out a hurt whimper.

“I want to though! I just don’t know what. I want to tell you so many things. Like how I never want to be apart from you again and that I’ll spend every moment I can making up what we lost. Hell, Eddie, I love y-“ He stopped dead when Eddie flinched as if his words had burned the other.

“Sorry,” Eddie sighed. “It’s just...hard. He made you say that to me so many times it’s now all...muddy in my head and I don’t know how to feel.”

That mother _fucker_. Many times, Richie had had to stop himself from going down to Attica Prison, finding that bastard, forming a bubble of water around his head and just watch him run out of air. He deserved it, Richie was sure. He must not have been doing a good job at concealing what he felt because Eddie took his hand again.

“I know, Richie.” And of course, he did. Richie only thought about it, Eddie had actually tried right there on the battle field. Beating Bowers so badly in a fit of rage that it had taken Bev, Bill and Mike to pull him off or, so he had been told. Eddie had been on probation for a month for it, only allowed to come back when he promised he wouldn’t ever let that happen again.

“What do we do now?” Richie asked softly, turning his hand so he could hold Eddie’s like he’d always wanted to in public. “I still want to be with you, so much.”

“I know. I do too, but I can’t.” Eddie said quietly, wiping at his eyes with his free hand and holding onto Richie’s even tighter. “At least not right now. Richie, please don’t cry.”

Richie sniffed and nodded, not wanting to look like a baby as he rubbed his face with his sleeve. It hurt. It mother fucking hurt and was so unfair. They put their lives on the line day in and day out to make sure the world was safe and the one amazing thing that Richie had thought he’d finally had was gone. How was that fucking fair? He watched their linked hands for a long time, memorizing how it looked because it would probably be the last time and he tightened his grip. “Can we at least be friends?”

“Oh, god yes!” Richie looked up to see relief written all over Eddie’s face and he had to smile a little bit at that.

“Really?”

Eddie nodded quickly, pulling their hands closer to himself. “Richie, I don’t want to be out of your life just because we can’t be together like that. I’d rather have anything over nothing.”

“Oh, thank god.” For the first time during this whole conversation Richie felt like he could breathe slightly and took in a shaky breath before letting it out with a soft laugh. “Cause I don’t think I could live without my Spaghetti.”

 His smile only grew when Eddie huffed in amusement. “Don’t push me, Trashmouth.”

 They were going to be okay. They were going to be fine.

 

* * *

 

Bill hadn’t been at home and when he’d answered his phone, he had sounded tired and distracted which meant only one thing. Georgie balanced the large pizza box in one hand and the bag of soda in the other, using his shoulder to push open the door to the conference room in headquarters and sure enough there sat his brother. Files were strewn all over the table with pictures hung up on the walls while Bill sat hunched over in one of the office chairs, pen in his mouth and staring at one of the many pieces of paper. Bill glanced up when he heard Georgie enter and immediately stood up, pen dropping from his mouth with a clatter.

“Georgie, what are-“

“Have you eaten?” He interrupted his brother, moving in and sliding the large box onto the table before hefting the drinks on to it as well. “What am I saying of course you haven’t. You’re Bill Denbrough. You don’t eat when there’s work involved.”

Georgie almost laughed at his brother’s offended look, rolling his eyes when he heard Bill start to list off what he’d eaten so far today.

“Oh, you’re right. I apologize.” He grinned when Bill frowned at his sarcastic tone. “Coffee and a ham sandwich all day is absolutely enough for and adult man who moonlights as a superhero.”

“Alright, smart ass.” Bill relented with a grumble, moving over to the pizza box and opening it, smiling when he saw it was their favorite. Mushroom, olives and pepperoni. Georgie cracked open a can of coke, taking a small sip and moving over towards the pictures hanging on the wall, the multiple red balloons in them unsettling. How -or what because we couldn’t rule out the weird- could sneak into a kid’s bedroom undetected by anyone or anything and just take a child without anyone noticing. No windows broken, no busted or jimmy opened doors. There hadn’t even been signs of a struggle from the kids, so Georgie was putting his money on weird.

“Do we have any leads?” Georgie turned to look at his brother, frowning when the older sibling gave a quiet hum.

“Not really.” Bill finished his pizza slice and grabbed a tissue from one of the holders on the table to wipe the grease from his fingers. “Mike agreed to keep his ears open to see if any animals had heard or seen anything. Richie and I are going to go questioning some of the families tomorrow, but I’m not sure what else they will tell us that they didn’t tell the cops.”

Georgie shrugged. “You never know. Maybe they’ll trust a hero more than a cop.”

He moved back over towards Bill and grabbed a slice of his own even though he didn’t really need it. Eating was something he hadn’t needed to do since coming back, but Bill always got this heartbroken look on his face whenever Georgie refused food, so he just ate anyway. Bill had the unfortunate gift of feeling guilty over anything.

Georgie can’t eat? Georgie doesn’t sleep?  Georgie keeps getting bothered by the dead? Georgie can’t ever have kids of his own because he’s basically a corpse?

All Bill’s fault according to his brother because he didn’t want to go out and play with him all those years ago on the day Georgie had been kidnapped and drowned. Honestly, he didn’t even really remember it. Just small little slips of memory, like the dull feeling of being scared, not being able to breathe and then peace. Being dead hadn’t even been bad, just like a really long sleep until he was woken up suddenly by his brother pulling his soul from the river Styx. One would have thought Bill would’ve felt better after literally traveling to the underworld, making a deal with Hades and fishing his brother out of a body of water filled with dead people...

But no. Bill was just an overachiever like that.

His brother was quiet as he read through a few more pieces of paper so Georgie ate his piece of pizza silently, sniffling a little before voicing a thought. “I could try looking-“

 “No.”

Georgie frowned deeply at the immediate shut down, placing his slice on the table and not caring if it left a mark. “Why the hell not?”

“First off, language.” Bill glared when Georgie snorted. “Second, we don’t need you pushing yourself like that. We’ll find something another way.”

“Pushing myself? Are you serious? Also, Richie says WAY worse.” Georgie couldn’t help the huff, even though he knew it was childish and wouldn’t help his brother see him as an adult any better.

“You have to sleep the whole next day after you go into the other world, Georgie. Who knows what it does to you every time you go under.” Bill’s tone was becoming a little harder, which used to make Georgie toe the line, but he wasn’t ten anymore and Bill was being ridiculous. Georgie took a deep breath, his chest puffing up it as he got ready.

“It doesn’t do _anything_ to me. It just takes energy to do it, just like all your guys powers do for you.” Georgie sliced a hand through the air when he saw Bill open his mouth to argue. He wasn’t going to let his brother bulldoze him into a safety corner just because he was overprotective, it was ridiculous! Why even let him on the team if he wasn’t allowed to use his powers?! “Okay, you and Silver don’t count because Silver is its own entity, but when you fight that takes a lot of you and you get tired. Same with my powers. It’s no big deal.”

“I already said no, Georgie.”

“Bill, come on! This is bulls-“

“I-I said NO!” The loud bang of Bill’s fist on the wooden table echoed through the room. Georgie stared at his brother for a long minute before looking down at the pizza box, refusing to cry even though he felt tears well up. The silence was almost oppressive, Georgie’s ears buzzing with the lack of sound after Bill’s loud outburst.  He heard Bill sigh after a moment, knew the soft apology for yelling but standing firm on what he saw as right was coming and normally Georgie would have let it happen and forgive.

But he was mad.

“Why did you even bring me back?” He whispered, gut clenching when he heard his brother take in a pained breath. “Why bring me back if you won’t even let me actually live?”

“Georgie...”

“I’m serious!” He finally looked up at Bill, refusing to back down even at the heartbroken look in his brother’s face. “You barely let me go on missions, you make sure to know where I am twenty-four seven even though I’m fucking nineteen years old, I’m barely allowed to go out at night, you keep me on this tight leash and you make me call mom and dad even though I don’t want to talk to them.”

“They miss yo-“

“They’re assholes, Bill! They treated you like crap when I died and even after I came back! After everything you did to get me back, they didn’t care.” This was an old fight; one Georgie didn’t even want to have. Bill refused to see what their parents had done to him, making excuses for their neglect day in and day out every time their mother called to complain that she hadn’t heard from Georgie all week. “But that’s not the point here! I love you, Bill, but I’m tired of being treated like I’m still that little kid that was taken. I’m an adult and if I want to use my powers to help with a case then I will.”

He refused to back down on this, even when Bill turned away and suspiciously rubbed his hands over his face with a sniff. He waited for Bill to speak first, feeling like if he spoke before him Georgie would lose in some weird way and he sat up a little straighter once his brother turned back around.

“You’re right.”

Huh?  “I know I am.”

“Hades gave you those powers for a reason.”

Georgie nodded quickly, a little unsure what to do with this sudden victory against Bill, but he tried to act like it wasn’t that big of a deal. “And think about how Athena would feel if you didn’t use Silver. Gifts from Gods are supposed to be used or something cool and wise like that.”

Georgie grinned when the smallest smile made its way on his brother’s lips, his hand moving to touch Silver who hung on Bill’s belt as a small metal rope.

“Alright, fine. Fine.” Bill ran his hand through his hair with a loud groan, moving over to sit in the chair next to Georgie. He reached out to take Georgie’s hand in his, weird how they were now the same size when before Bill’s hand had almost dwarfed his back when they were younger. “You can take a look, but I want to be there when you do...in case.”

Georgie rolled his eyes, but Bill’s face told him he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. “Alright, you can stay. But you can’t get freaked out like you did the last time.”

“I didn’t freak out.”

“Bill, I woke up to you shaking me and screaming.”

“Your eyes had gone white and you went limp! That is not my fault that I freaked out. Anyone would have.” Georgie had to laugh at Bill’s defensive tone, tugging on their linked hands to let his brother know he didn’t really mean anything by it.

“Okay. So, I can go down and check and you can stay if you remain calm. Deal?”

Bill chewed on his bottom lip before nodding, shaking their hands up and down. “Deal. Now, let’s head home. I’m beat.”

 

* * *

 

Stan ran his fingers through his hair, gripping it tight at the roots and tugging until he felt his eyes water. Fuck Richie and his fucking _shoebox_ full of greasy receipts! Why couldn’t he have some kind of folder or filing system? Instead he just threw every piece of paper with numbers on it into this stupid ass shoe box and expected Stan to figure it all out and make sense of it. Sometimes he wondered why he had ever left the firm to become the team’s full-time accountant and financier, knowing it was less stress throughout the year, but dear god come tax season he wanted to strangle them all. At least Eddie and Kay were organized so Ben and Bev were a little easier and he had been doing Mike and his own taxes for years so he could do those with his eyes closed.

 But god damn Richie.

Stan sat back with a sigh and pushed the shoebox away from him on his desk, not wanting to look at it for one more second tonight. He needed a break, one that involved the red wine in the fridge and his fiancé preferably. He glanced at the clock, seven thirty, before powering down his laptop and reorganizing the papers on his desk, placing the stupid shoe box up on his shelf for later and pushing in his chair.

He checked the clock again, seven thirty-three, before switching off the light and closing the door to make his way towards the living room where he knew Mike would be. He pursed his lips a little when he found white fluff and purple fabric bits littered around the hall towards the living room, bending to pick up the pieces even though Mr. Chips II was supposed to be Mike’s job. He came into the room, arms full of the small massacred stuffed triceratops they had bought Mr. Chips II for his birthday and glared at the man sitting on the couch.

He waited a moment, but when Mike seemed to not notice his presence, he cleared his throat loudly.

That got his fiancé’s attention, the man turning around to look at him with a happy smile before he saw the mess in Stan’s arms.

“Uh oh.”

“Uh oh is right.” Stan replied, moving into the kitchen to dump the mess in the trash before moving back into the living room and taking a seat on the coffee table across from the couch where Mike sat. He glanced at the large blueprints and maps Mike had spread out across the table, smiling at Mike’s neat handwritten notes scrawled all over the papers. “Still out looking?”

Mike raised an eyebrow. “I’m not in trouble for our son’s mess?”

“Oh no. You are.” Stan replied easily, leaning down to find that one of the maps was a layout of the city’s sewer system. “But we can talk about that later, after I’ve had a drink and some...fun.”

Mike looked surprised for a second but soon grinned, reaching out to loop two fingers through Stan’s black leather belt, pulling the thinner man over and on to the couch with him. Stan let out a soft chuckle and he moved so he could straddle Mike’s legs, sitting comfortably in the other’s lap as he took Mike’s face into his hands and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. They sat like that for a moment, just breathing one another in quietly as Stan’s nerves started to loosen, Mike’s hands rubbing up and down Stan’s back slowly. Stan could feel his body relaxing, his limbs feeling a little heavier and his mind not so much of a buzz, and he lifted his head with a deep breath to give the other a happy smile.

Mike returned that smile, tapping on Stan’s side in a silent way to ask if it was alright now. Stan gave a small nod and Mike wasted no time in pulling Stan’s tucked button up out from his slacks, his large hands sliding up under the shirt and undershirt to touch his bare skin. Stan let out a pleased hum at the feeling, the buzz to phase just under his skin but he could control it and he wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck to give him a deep kiss. Stan gasped against his fiancé’s lips when he felt Mike roll his hips up against his, his body acting on its own to meet Mike.

“Couch or bed?” Mike asked, panting softly and Stan had to lean down and kiss him again because he had the perfect man. Mike knew him, inside and out, knew how he ticked and didn’t get upset because he wasn’t as easy going as most. He loved him. He loved Mike Hanlon, his fiancé and soon to be husband, so much. When Stan pulled away, he shook his head, which when he saw Mike’s confused look, he understood that had made no sense.

“Sorry,” he whispered, giving Mike’s nose a soft kiss. “Bed please. If we do it on the couch without a towel, I’ll be worried about a stain and I really don’t want to go get a towel and be far from you right now.”

“Fine by me.” Mike leaned up, looking as if he was ready to give Stan another kiss when he froze, eyes going wide and slightly glassy. Stan frowned and sat back a little, knowing what the meant and tried to reign in his irritation at whatever animal was trying to talk to Mike right now. It was kind of unreal that he was being cock blocked by his fiancé being Snow White, but whatever. When the hands on his hips suddenly dug in painfully, Stan hissed and reached out to grab Mike’s forearms scowling at the man, but when Mike still didn’t respond he started to become worried.

“Mike?” Nothing. “Mike!”

Stan was ready to try and phase through Mike’s arm to get him back here but before he could even move Mike sucked in a deep shuddering breath through his mouth, wide brown eyes his own again as he looked up at Stan. Stan immediately cupped Mike’s face when he saw the terrified look in the other man’s eyes. “What’s wrong? What did they tell you?”

“Nothing.” Mike whispered and Stan frowned in confusion. Mike gulped, his hands moving to cover Stan’s and Stan noticed they were shaking. “My contacts in the sewers, their connections were cut. All of them. At once.”

“Cut? How?” Stan didn’t understand how that could happen. Mike’s gift stretched for miles, he could communicate with a dog all the way out in the suburbs if he needed to so to suddenly have the communication cut didn’t make sense. Unless. “They were killed?”

At Mike’s uneasy breath Stan moved off his lap, taking the man’s hand in his and holding it. “Where, Mike?”

Mike nodded, knowing that grieving for his animal friends would have to wait right now, taking his hand out of Stan’s and moving to push through the blueprints. He pulled up the one of the New York City sewer system and tapped at a part under Queens with his pointer and middle finger. “Here. All of my contacts down in the sewers around Queens are gone. Not one single one is left for miles.”

Stan looked down at the blueprint Mike had, the sprawling mess of tubes and pipes seemed daunting when he thought about it. Add the fact that apparently something was down there killing rats and other small creatures made Stan’s skin crawl, but heroes weren’t supposed to be scared. More like weren’t allowed to be. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Wine and fun would have to wait. “We should go check it out.”

He didn’t feel any better when Mike nodded. “I agree. I’ll message the group to let them know, tell them to be ready for backup if we need it.”

“I hope we won’t.” Stan muttered, sighing as Mike got up to get their coats. 

 

* * *

 

Eddie groaned as he pushed the creaky door to his apartment open, throwing his work out bag down on the floor and kicking the door shut as he made his way to the made-up mattress on the other side of the studio. He flopped down on the older mattress with a huff, his muscles screaming at him for the movement, but he paid them no mind as he let his thoughts wander. He had gone to work out at the train yard, the only place besides Bev’s personal gym that could offer him a challenge, to get his mind off his talk with Richie. It had worked for the most part, Eddie had pulled an entire twenty car train for two miles before his limbs started to shake but he kept pushing because the thought of Richie crying made him feel too many powerful emotions at once.

And powerful emotions could be good, but too much became deadly when it came to Eddie.

Eddie sighed as he ran his hand through his hair, hating that he still felt down even after him and Richie had essentially made up. They were friends again, why wasn’t that enough for him? And if it wasn’t why couldn’t he just get over his problems and _be_ with Richie? Richie had made it clear he wanted that, all Eddie had to do was say yes but no, he was too broken for it.

Richie had been about to say he loved him and the idea of hearing it from the real Richie made Eddie want to cry because it was ruined. Ruined by that fucker who knew exactly what he was doing to Eddie the entire time and had laughed at him when they had figured out what he had done.

He growled and slammed a fist down on the mattress, cursing when he felt the springs inside snap under the force. Getting angry all over again wouldn’t help anything and the threat of another probation was the last thing Eddie wanted. He needed to get a grip, if he acted like anything other than fine with this arrangement who knew what Richie would take away from it. He refused to hurt Richie anymore with his avoidance, even if seeing him every day and being around him but not able to touch him was some of the worst torture Eddie had ever been through.

He closed his eyes and tugged Richie’s jacket tighter around him, the other’s smell long gone but the idea of it being Richie’s helped a little. He had been so relieved when Richie hadn’t asked for it back, the idea of having to hand it over after keeping it with him for so long would have broken him right there in the coffee shop. He laid there for a bit longer, letting his mind run through the day over and over before the feeling of needing a shower became too much. He still had grease under his finger nails from work and the dried sweat from his work out was making him start to itch so he sat up, grabbing his communicator before walking to the small closet he called a bathroom.

He checked for messages as he turned on the water, still nothing from Mike and Stan about back up since their last message, then tossed the communicator onto the sink before starting to strip. The water was freezing and took forever to turn warm, but he didn’t want to waste time, so he jumped in and hissed while he waited for the water to change. When it was finally a temperature that didn’t make him want to scream, Eddie took his washcloth and started to scrub, his skin turning a bright shade of red with the force he used. He never liked to linger in the shower anymore, just like how he didn’t like to linger in his apartment for longer than he had to, there were too many memories around. Ghosts of what him and Richie’s body had done, declarations that had turned out to be evil lies and the shower held a lot of them. Eddie gulped as his mind traitorously remembered them barely fitting, Richie’s naked thigh slotted between his as they kissed and-

Eddie shut off the water as soon as the soap was washed off, scowling at how confused his heart, mind and body were over this. He got out quickly, not wanting to even look at himself in the mirror as he grabbed a towel and rubbed it harshly over his head, making his hair start to curl. Damn, he needed a haircut.

_I like your hair long, Eds. Just wanna run my hands through those cute curls._

Had that really been Richie? It had been before the fight with Bowers when that whole mess had started, so...Yeah. He really needed a haircut. He wrapped the towel around his waist and turned when he heard his communicator chirp loudly, frowning as he picked it up. His stomach went cold when he saw the message from Mike.

 

  **Bloodroot: URGENT! LOST COMMUNICATION WITH GHOST WHEN HE PHASED INTO THE SEWERS. HAVE NOT HEARD BACK IN SOME TIME. NEED BACKUP!**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mention of dead rats
> 
> Talk of past brainwashing and sex during brainwashing.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This chapter contains things that might not be okay for some people. Please see notes below the story for details.
> 
> Thank you to [Ashleygail](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashleygail) for coming up with Pasta's name!

He didn’t know what was worse. The smell or the darkness.

Stan grit his teeth as he turned down another tunnel, it looking exactly like the one he had just walked through five minutes ago, and stopped to hold the blueprints up again. He shifted the papers to one hand and shined his travel light on them, squinting as he found where he had left Mike above ground, then tried to follow his way to where exactly he had ended up, but there were so many twists and levels that he got lost after the first couple turns.  How he had phased through so many floors was beyond him, he was normally was great at keeping track and it bothered him that he slipped up this badly. He sighed and folded the paper irritably, shoving it into the back of his slacks as he shined the light around the dark concrete tunnel.

The plan had been Stan would phase down into the first level of the tunnels and see if he could find anything. If he did, he’d call and Mike would find his way down to him immediately. Mike had insisted on going himself, but Stan in the most loving way he could let him know that Mike had no resources down there now. At least Stan could use his powers below ground. But that plan had gone to shit when Stan had somehow miscalculated how far down he was going and then his communicator decided to freak out on him.

He continued forward, frowning at the squish he felt in his shoes from them being waterlogged with sewage. Why he hadn’t changed into his full costume where he had actual boots that could withstand this stuff he didn’t know, but now he’d probably have to throw his loafers away.

Shame. He really liked them too

He pressed the call button on his communicator, scowling when it still gave him nothing but static. It made no sense. Their communicators could work even in the depths of the Atlantic, so the New York City sewer system really shouldn’t have been an issue. He pressed it again just to make sure, sighing at the crackle of static again as he glanced up at the ceiling. It was maybe three inches above him, he was able to reach up and easily rest his palm against the frigid concrete. He tried to think how far apart the ceiling was from the next level’s floor and if he jumped high enough, he could maybe phase up through the floor.

Or get stuck.

Stan shuddered at the thought and shook his head. No, jumping was a risk that he wasn’t going to take right now, he’d just have to find a way out of this disgusting labyrinth by walking it. He made a few more turns, the tunnels seeming to go on forever as his light bounced of the dark water -then he saw it.

There.

About ten feet away, was something in the water.

He did his best to remain calm as the thing started floating down the tunnel towards him and he prayed to god it wasn’t some variant of human waste or worse. He kept his light positioned so he could get a better look as it moved closer and felt a scream lodge into his throat when he realized exactly what it was.

Rats. Dead rats.

Dozens of dead rats floating in the water.

He took a steadying breath, doing his best not to panic when the current moved their bodies past him, bumping their stiff little corpses against his shins and making his skin crawl. At least they were now sure that Mike’s contacts had been killed and Stan started moving again, doing his best not to focus on how their frozen little pink paws seemed to be reaching up for help. He sighed with relief when he finally passed them and Stan had noticed that he had come to a sort of opening in the tunnels. Putting his light in his mouth, he placed his hands on a ledge and hoisted himself up into the opening that led to a larger room, a muffled curse coming out when the flowing water splashed all over him. He tried to wipe some of the grime off of his hands onto his shirt before removing the light from his mouth to look around. It looked like some sort of larger sewer chamber, the bricks faded brown and black from age while the ceiling looked questionably sound at best.

“Better find an exit, this thing looks like it’ll fall any second.” He muttered to himself as he started looking around for another tunnel. He had started to look around when he heard something shuffle in the far-off corner where water gushed from one of the pipes, the corner where it seemed to be the darkest. Stan stood very still, listening over the dull roar of the running water and bit his lip when he heard it again along with a quiet wail.

It...it sounded like a man.

Stan took a breath before shining his light over in the corner, almost dropping his flashlight in surprise when he saw a body of a man hunched over in the corner crying over something. The man was dark skinned with broad shoulders, his dark grey t-shirt ripped in a few places down the back while his black track pants were caked with mud. Stan’s brow furrowed as he tried to think why that outfit looked so familiar, then gasped as he started to run towards the man.

“Mike!” He shouted, running over to his fiancé. “I thought we agreed you needed to stay up top.”

Anger at Mike not listening to the plan was over ruled by his relief at seeing him. At least maybe together they could figure a way out of this awful maze, but Stan stopped short when Mike didn’t really respond. In fact, the other acted like he hadn’t heard Stan at all and continued to weep loudly into his hands, the anguished cries making Stan’s gut twist in worry for his fiancé. “Mike? What happened?”

Mike’s shoulders shook with his cries, his hoarse voice gasping for air as his crying seemed to escalate into almost hysterics. Stan moved forward, his need to comfort the man overwhelming until he glanced over to see what Mike was hunched over and his blood ran cold.

Laying on the floor was another Stan, but only half of another Stan. The other one’s body had been cut cleanly in half, his upper body on the floor in front of them while his lower half...

Stan slowly looked up at the wall, trying not to vomit as he saw a stiff leg in tan slacks and loafers sticking out from the wall at an odd angle, barely hanging on. Stuck. Trapped. Blood oozed down the brick from where the hips and other leg must have been lodged inside and Stan did finally turn to throw up into the roaring water. He heaved and heaved, trying to get the image of his dismembered body out of his head.

He heard Mike’s sobbing grow in volume and he wiped his mouth before staggering over to his fiancé and kneeling down next to him, gripping his shoulders so the man would look at him. Mike stayed firmly rooted where he was, face still buried in his hands as he started to scream.

“Mike!” Stan tried, desperate to get Mike to see him as he tugged on Mike’s hands. “That’s not me! It’s not me! You need to look at me!”

He jerked back when Mike went still and everything seemed to go silent, even the rushing water going quiet at Stan’s yell. Stan tried to get his breathing to calm down, gasping breaths sounding too loud in the quiet as he watched Mike’s frozen body feeling relief when Mike’s hands moved from his face to look at him.

But that was not Mike.

Mike was beautiful with a smile that made Stan know everything would be alright no matter what. This....this was like some gross twisted version of the man he loved, skin sickly pale, almost gray, and peeling as if it was old paint on a building. His -its- eyes were not warm brown, instead they were just soulless empty sockets and Stan stumbled back as the thing reached for him with its face contorted in grief.

“Why?” The creature croaked, hands reaching for Stan’s ankle but he scrambled away. “Why couldn’t you do it? Why couldn’t you control yourself, Stan?”

Stan shook his head at the accusation, his words lost in fright as the thing started to crawl towards him.

“Why couldn’t you keep it in check? You’re always so good at it. Why couldn’t you do it? You messed up. How could you? How?”

It continued to babble and cry, the awful voice becoming louder and more upset. Stan shuffled back quickly, yelping when the creature’s horrible hand closed around his ankle and squeeze. God, it was so cold.

“How could you do this to me?! You would leave me behind like that?! Is that what you wanted?! Is that what you had planned all along?! You just wanted to die, didn’t you?!”

“NO!” Stan yelled and phased, his body slipping away from the hold and quickly down into the next level, but he didn’t stop there. He just kept phasing through the floors as the creature’s voice continued to follow him no matter how far he went.

 

* * *

 

 It was dark out except for the street lamps outside, the watch on his wrist telling him it was almost eleven thirty. Stan had been down there for far too long and the continued static from Stan’s line made something grow cold in Mike’s stomach.

To say Mike was panicking would have been the understatement of the century. His fingernails had been bitten into the quick by the time the rest of the team arrived in uniform, Silver’s engine loud as Bill peeled into the abandoned lot that Mike and Stan had picked to start their mission. Mike flinched a little when he saw the angry expression on Bill’s face when he pulled off his helmet, Silver immediately transforming into a thin rope around Bill’s hips.

“What happened?” Bill barked as he stalked up to Mike, his face matching his hair in color. Even though he was an inch or two shorter, Bill’s anger made Mike take a step back.

“My contacts for the sewer were cut off. We wanted to see what had hap-“ Mike started, but flinched when Bill stepped into his space and poked him roughly in the chest.

“You went without backup! You didn’t even wait for a response! You know the rules, Mike! What were you thinking?” Mike dropped his chin to his chest, knowing that the rules were in place for a reason, but he had been so distraught about losing his contacts. He opened his mouth to respond, but Bill beat him to it. “You weren’t thinking! That’s what!”

“Chill, Bill. I’m sure Staniel is fine, he’s just lost in the crap tubes. We’ll fish him out. Anyone got any bird books to throw down there? Fish him right out.” Richie mines pulling up a fish with a fishing pole as Bill and Mike turned to glare at him for very different reasons, Bill for being interrupted and Mike for his joke about Stan. When Richie raised his hands in defense, Bill turned back to Mike, luckily a little less angry than he had been before and sighed.

“What _happened_?”

“We were at home when I felt my contacts for the sewer go black.” Mike explained, the feeling still making him shaky as he thought about what could kill that many animals in one go and now it was does there with Stan. Oh, God. “We sent out a message to you guys, but we figured it wouldn’t hurt to go look ourselves.”

Mike held up his hands again when Bill opened up his mouth, trying to stop the angry remarks before they started. “I know. I know, Bill. It was a stupid choice.”

Bill closed his mouth click of his teeth and crossed his arms, nodding his head for Mike to continue. Mike sighed and glanced at the open manhole, the same one he had let Stan go down alone into. “Stan agreed to go look since I had no way of using my powers under there with the animals gone.”

“And you let him?” Mike winced at Eddie’s words, biting his lip roughly when Eddie reached out to touch his arm. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it to sound like that.”

“No,” Mike gulped. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have let him go alone, but he insisted and I needed to know what happened to them. His communicator stopped responding after ten minutes of him phasing down.”

He wiped at his eyes, the idea of his impatience being the reason Stan could be in trouble made him feel ill. Everyone was quiet for a moment before Bill cleared his throat as Silver slithered from around his hip to wrap around Bill’s hand. “Alright. Here’s what we’re going to do. Richie, when we get down there, I want you to search through the water, see if you can place him and give us a general direction to start looking. It might be hard if he’s phasing, but it’s at least worth a shot.”

Richie gave a small salute. “Roger, Boss man.”

“Ben, once we have an idea of where he might be, I want you to take Bev and search the east side of the tunnels. Also, try and figure out why your tech isn’t working down there.” Mike watched as Bev reached to take Ben’s hand, giving it a squeeze to let him know it wasn’t his fault. “Richie and Eddie, you that the south parts. Try and keep locked on him, Richie, if our communicators go out we need you to be the one to help bring us back together. Me and Georgie will take the west side.”

Mike frowned. “Wait, what about me?”

“You?” Bill asked, like it was obvious. “ _You_ will be staying up here.”

“You can’t do that!” Mike argued as he stared in disbelief at Bill. “You can’t expect me to stay up here and twiddle my thumbs while Stan is down there with who knows what.”

“What exactly do you plan to do if something comes up?” Bill asked, bright blue eyes piercing but Mike stood his ground, refusing to back down. “You said so yourself the reason Stan went is because the plants can’t reach through the concrete and all of your animals are gone.”

“I can still fight, damn it. Just because my powers won’t work down there doesn’t mean I’m completely fucking useless!” He could feel his chest heaving, having yelled the last bit so that it echoed around the tall apartment buildings around them. He took a step closer to Bill, using his full height so that the redhead would have to look up at him. “I’m not going to do nothing while he’s down there and I don’t care if I have your permission or not.”

They stared each other down, both arms crossed against their chests.  No one daring breathe or blink until Bill pursed his lips and then turned to let out a loud sigh.

“Fine,” He muttered as Silver transformed into a large flashlight, fitting snugly in his hand. “But me and you are having a long talk after this about listening and following orders. No negotiating on that.”

Mike gave a small nod. “That’s fine. And Bill?”

Bill turned to look at him and gave a tired questioning hum as the group started their descent into the sewers. Mike waited until it was just the two of them left before walking over to the redhead and wrapping his arms around him. He felt Bill go stiff at the unexpected show of affection, but he loosened up after a moment and gave Mike’s back a gentle pat.

“Thank you.” Mike whispered against the smooth leather of Bill’s jacket and he received another pat.

“We’ll find him.” Bill said back just as quietly. “Don’t worry. He’s strong, he’ll be okay.”

They pulled apart with small smiles and Bill gestured towards Mike’s sleep clothes. “Tell me you at least brought your mask.”

Mike gave a soft laugh as he reached into the pocket of his track pants and pulled out the bright white mask that fit perfectly to his face. He watched Bill smirk when he placed it on, the adhesive making it stick and even though he knew he’d have no powers down there he felt strong. He followed Bill down the hole where the rest of the group stood in murky water, well most of the group. Eddie kept himself a good foot above the water with his powers and Mike had to laugh at the sight. He watched as Richie waved a hand in Eddie’s direction, his blue eyes rolling so hard it was a wonder his contacts didn’t get stuck. “You look ridiculous like that.”

“Look, just because you don’t mind wading around in piss and shit, doesn’t mean I don’t.” Eddie replied, turning his nose up a little and then yelling when Richie actually leaned down to splash some of the nasty water at him. “Richie! What the fuck!”

Richie’s laugh echoed through the tunnels before Bill told them to cut it out and for Richie to start looking. Mike held his breath as Richie crouched down, slipping his gloved hands into the water and closed his eyes. They could all feel it. The moment the water around them was under Richie’s control, the way the water lapped at their shins felt different, less unknown and more comforting. Watching Richie use his power always amazed Mike, even though Richie said it wasn’t anything special like controlling animals and plants. Even through the distant roar of running water, Mike could hear the soft exhale from Richie’s mouth as he focused, dark brow pinching which made Mike’s gut clench.

“You’re right, Bill. He’s phasing. A lot. I’m only able to pick him up in the water every few seconds.”

The worried expression on Bill’s face hardened. “Which direction?”

Richie went quiet again before humming unsurely. “I think...west? But he’s phasing really fast so the direction could change pretty quick cause these tubes mean nothing to him.”

Bill nodded and Richie stood back up, shaking off the water from his hands. “Same plan, Mike, you’re with Georgie and me. Everyone else, go your direction. In two hours, we meet back up top no matter what, alright?”

When everyone gave some form of agreement Bill raised a hand to his communicator, surprised when it clicked to life perfectly, but still only received static from Stan’s. Without another word Bill took off in his direction, Georgie following before looking back at Mike with a small smile. “You coming?”

“Yeah.” Mike nodded and jogged through the filthy water to catch up with the youngest Denbrough, Georgie’s hand moving to wrap around Mike’s, giving it a squeeze. Mike gave a squeeze back as they trudged further into the deep dark tunnels.

 

* * *

 

 

Eddie felt like he was going to gag when they turned a corner and the smell seemed to increase tenfold, causing him to reach up and cover his nose with a groan. He heard Richie chuckle and sent a glare towards his teammate, holding up his middle finger at Richie which only caused the man to grin. “Shut up, Richie.”

“I’m sorry,” Richie replied, holding up his hands in apology. “But you are just so damn cute when you get all pissy about being clean. You do know you’re a mechanic for a living, right? You get oil and grease all over you, but you have a problem with murky water?”

“Look,” Eddie floated up ahead and pulled in front so Richie would have to stop, poking him in the shoulder with a finger, a little satisfied when Richie scowled and rubbed the spot. “Not all of us can be so in love with water that we don’t care what kind it is or what’s in it. Also, car oil and grease are different.”

“How?”

“It’s not literally human waste!”

Eddie’s loud voice echoed down the tunnels and both glanced over to watch the dark shadows from their lights as Eddie’s words finally faded. The shadows seemed to move even when Eddie and Richie held completely still, almost as if they were their own living beings instead of being a part of Richie and him. The idea made Eddie shudder. After a bit Richie took a deep breath and shook his head, moving around Eddie without touching him and continuing forward. “Alright, alright. I get it. It’s not the same. Sorry.”

Eddie frowned at Richie’s easy apology, surprised when normally Richie would keep ragging on him for hours about his need to be clean. As they moved through the tunnels, Richie’s silence started to make Eddie anxious and he dropped a few inches so he could be on the same level as his friend.

“Everything alright? I wasn’t actually mad.” He asked quietly, not wanting to hear the worry in his voice echo back at him right now. “You seem kind of...quiet all of a sudden.”

“Yeah, sure.” Richie replied a little flippantly, causing Eddie to scowl a little. “Just searching for my best friend in miles of dark sewer tunnels while something might be after him. Sorry I’m not more upbeat.”

“Jesus,” Eddie snapped. “Sorry I asked.”

They didn’t speak again for an hour after that, the only sound being their breathing and Richie trudging through the water before Eddie heard a defeated sigh and the other man stopped moving. Eddie frowned and stopped as well, turning to look at the other and raised an eyebrow when Richie’s shoulders slumped.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you.” Richie started softly, reaching up to run a hand through his hair, then remembered what that hand had been in and cringed. “There’s just been a lot going on, especially between us, and I’m just trying to sort a bunch of stuff out.”

Eddie bit his lip and tried to hold onto the annoyance at Richie snapping at him, but it fled the moment Richie looked so defeated and he nodded. “It’s okay. I mean, it wasn’t, but you apologized so it’s okay.”

Richie didn’t look any happier, but he gave a small smile. “Thanks.”

Eddie took a deep breath and let it out. “So...do you want to talk about it? The other stuff, I mean?”

Richie gave a small shrug as he started moving again, Eddie moving out of the way and following quietly as he waited. Richie didn’t disappoint because after a second or two he let out a frustrated groan. “Just, everything with us is shitty, sorry but it is, then this thing with Stan and the kids. Then the vet called with Pasta’s x-rays and turns out he’d eaten yet another rock so he has to get his stomach pumped again!”

Eddie winced, remembering Richie’s very old and fat Chihuahua. “Isn’t that like...the fourth time this month?”

“Right?” Richie asked a little loudly, though his echo didn’t seem nearly as sinister as Eddie’s had. “I mean, I don’t even know where he got the rock! I watch him when I take him for walk and I got rid of my palm tree that had rocks in the soil, so like somehow he’s magicking rocks for his fat face to swallow down whole and making my ass pay for removing them.”

Eddie tried not to smile, he really did, but when Richie started talking about Pasta, he got this weird loving look on his face even when he was upset about the dog. Eddie could understand, Pasta was hard not to love even when he tried to bite peoples fingers off for getting too close to his food. He always liked to lay in Eddie’s lap when Eddie used to come over and he could spend hours just scratching Pasta’s tummy. “I miss that dog. Sorry, I know your angry at him, but I do.”

Richie turned to look at him with such a fond expression that Eddie had to look away otherwise he would return it.

“He misses you too, ya know? Says my belly scratches aren’t on par with yours.” Eddie huffed a soft laugh and reached over to gently shove at Richie’s shoulder, making sure not to hurt him with his strength. Richie stumbled dramatically, but laughed as well. “I’m serious. You should come over, I can order pizza like we used to. That way you can have an actual meal, unlike those saltine and peanut butter sandwiches you always eat.”

Eddie froze and he could tell the exact second Richie understood what he just said because turned around immediately, hands up. “I-I didn’t mean anything by that.”

“No,” Eddie bit out, mood souring immediately. “You did.”

“Eds, I swear I didn’t.”

It was well known that everyone on the team did really well for themselves. Bill was a well-known author with four best sellers under his belt, Bev’s fashion lines were booming, Ben was designing the newest skyscraper, Stan was a phenomenal accountant as well as running that old farm with Mike that they had refurbished and rented out to weddings in the summer. Even Richie now was becoming well known in the entertainment scene with his show, then there was Eddie. Eddie had dropped out of college his junior year to become a mechanic at a small auto shop in the Bronx, a choice that almost killed his mom. After years of saving and what was left of the money his dad had left him, Eddie opened up his own shop right in Brooklyn. He did good work and he had a decent flow of customers, but he had only just gotten into the green with his finances this year and it was just barely.

Eddie was poor. So what. He didn’t care. He was making his dreams come true, so what if it meant bargain hunting and buying only essentials.

It only bothered him when Richie made jokes or comments because Richie’s opinion mattered too much to Eddie.

“Whatever. I get it. Eddie’s poor ha ha.” He started to move again when he felt Richie grab his arm and he had to stop himself from pushing the other away.

“Eddie, come on. That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean by it, Rich? Why would you even say it if you didn’t mean it?”

“I don’t know! I just- you know me! I say things without thinking! That’s not an excuse, I’m just-“ Richie continue to ramble and that’s when Eddie heard it. He quickly brought his hand up to silence Richie, the other stopping to stare when Eddie turned his head towards the way they had just come and listened.

It was silent for one second.

Then two.

Then a scream.

“Stan.” Eddie breathed and picked Richie up in his arms as he rocketed his way towards their friend.

 

* * *

 

Richie had forgotten what flying with Eddie was like, the sheer speed of it making him tuck his face into Eddie’s shoulder as they flew through the tunnels to what Richie assumed was Stan. Richie tightened his hold around Eddie’s shoulders when they took a neck breaking turn, cursing under his breath as Eddie held him closer.

It was like being held by a space heater with built arms. How Eddie survived the summers Richie never knew.

He hissed when they suddenly stopped, Richie’s hair flying in his face and mouth as Eddie floated and listened. Richie barely had time to figure out what was up and down before Eddie was taking off again, but at least this time he could hear the sound too.

Stan was screaming.

_Fuck_. “Eddie! Hurry!”

He shouldn’t have been surprised when Eddie pulled him in tighter and actually listened, picking up his speed so that the air almost felt painful even through Richie’s uniform. It only felt like seconds before Eddie came to a dead stop in front of a larger tunnel, actually dropping down into the water and staggering a little which was odd because nothing was too much for Eddie’s strength. Richie lifted his head to look around and found out exactly why Eddie was suddenly so shaky.

Over in the corner, huddled into a tight ball sat Stan. Dirty hands over his head as he rocked back and forth muttering to himself, his entire body soaked and covered in mud.

“Shit!” Richie pushed himself out of Eddie’s arms, falling into the water below and scrambling up to run over to his friend. He fell to his knees beside the other man and reached out, his hand barely touching Stan’s shoulder before he was violently shoved away with a scream.

“Go away!” Stan yelled, his eyes wide with terror as he started to phase again, but Richie reached out to take Stan’s hand before it could disappear and leaned in quickly to press his forehead against his friend’s.

“Stan! Come on! Look at me! Look at me!” He heard Stan let out an awful sob, breath hitching as wide green eyes searched Richie’s. God, what had happened to him? His heart broke when Stan continued to sob, tears making treks down his dirty face but stopped his phasing, his thin arms coming to wrap around Richie and hold him tight as he wept.

“Please! Please!” Stan’s whole body shook. “I don’t want to lose it! Please! Make it stop!”

“Shh...” Richie hushed gently, hand moving to stroke the curls on his friend’s head as he held him tightly. He had no idea what Stan didn’t want to lose, but he would make sure he didn’t. “I won’t let you lose it. I promise. I got you. I have you Stan. I’m not letting you go.”

Stan continued to cry into Richie’s neck and he pulled his friend into his lap, doing his best to pull the water from Stan’s clothes so he wouldn’t be so cold. Stan’s skin felt like ice to the touch and it was uncomfortably pale with a small tinge of blue which sent a jolt of worry through Richie. He glanced over at Eddie, relieved when he saw Eddie already on his communicator, telling everyone where they were and that they had found Stan. Richie continued to hold the man, silently panicking over how badly his body shook and refused to let go for even a second until their team found them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings:
> 
> \- Stan sees his own body mutilated by failing to phase through a wall correctly
> 
> -lots of dead rats
> 
> -mention of creatures skin peeling off it's body


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie and Richie have a talk in the hospital while visting Stan and Bev has an unfortunate encounter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There are some parts in this chapter some might find disturbing. There are details at the end of the chapter if you would like to check before reading.
> 
> Huge thank you to [Tinyarmedtrex](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinyarmedtrex) for betaing! Any mistakes are mine!

 

 

 

_E_

_d_

_d_

_i_

_e!_

 

_His body was burning. An all-consuming fire that would never burn out until he died._

 

_S_

_t_

_o_

_p!_

 

_He was the brightest thing on earth at that moment._

 

_E_

_D_

_D_

_I_

_E!_

 

 

_He could feel the power of the stars course through his veins as he screamed, his fists not feeling anything as he pounded them against Henry’s face. He could feel the bone crunch and the slick of blood, but he continued relentlessly, the image of Richie’s lost expression fueling his anger._

_“You’re going to kill him!”_

_Bill’s voice was distant along with his other teammates and Eddie clasped his hands together above his head, chest heaving with tears slipping down his cheeks. He glared down at Henry’s broken and bloodied body, the man not even conscious anymore before he screamed again and brought his fists down._

_“NO!”_

_Eddie yelled when he felt Bev’s arms go around his waist and pull him away from Henry, Mike’s vines wrapping around his arms and holding tight._

_“Let me go!” He screamed as he felt his body start to become unbearably hot. “I’ll kill him! I’ll destroy him!”_

_“Eddie…?” Eddie’s blazing eyes turned to see Richie, looking so confused and worried. “Wh-What is happening?”_

Eddie gasped, eyes flying open as the smell of smoke and the blaring sound of his smoke alarm assaulted his senses. He didn’t even have to turn his head to know that he had blown a hole in his mattress again and he sat up with a groan, rubbing his still hot hands over his face. He glanced over at his phone, reaching out with his toe to check the time since his hands were still too warm and sighed when it showed it was five in the morning.

Well, might as well get up. He had to be at the hospital by eight to relieve Mike anyway.

Eddie moved around the smoking hole in his mattress, floating up to the smoke alarm on the wall to switch it off before heading to the shower.

He let his forehead rest against the cracked tiles as the lukewarm water beat down his back, trying his best to block out the images from his mind.

 The dreams were getting worse.

His fingers slipped against the wall and he grit his teeth, trying to get the phantom smell of blood and the sound of Bower’s gurgling breath away from him. He hadn’t killed him in this dream, which was a slight step up from the other times he’d had this dream. The other dreams of his body imploding were another matter entirely

Eddie sighed as he turned the water off after washing and moved to get ready, hating the awful dark bags under his eyes. He pulled on an overly large sweatshirt and jeans, not really caring what he looked like, before shoving his feet roughly into his tennis shoes.

Going out with his hair still damp was a big F U to his ghost of a mom.

Making it to the hospital in record time, Eddie stopped to get a crappy cup of coffee before making his way towards the elevators and stepping inside. He picked at the sleeve of his coffee cup as the elevator went up, up, up, wondering if Stan would be any better today than he had the last couple days.

It had been a week and a half since they had found Stan in the sewers, the man nothing but a crying mess the entire way up to the surface. He had clung to Richie, refusing to even go near Mike, yelling that it wasn’t really his fiancé and that he wouldn’t be fooled twice. The hurt look on Mike’s face had made Eddie’s chest hurt.

When he got to the floor he needed, Eddie quickly walked to the room number he knew by heart now. Room 838’s door was cracked open and Eddie peeked inside, biting his lip when he saw Mike in the guest chair with his face in his hands. He knocked softly, smiling slightly when Mike looked up and moved into the room to see that Stan was asleep.

“He finally started falling asleep?”

Mike’s face looked grim. “No.”

“Oh." 

Sedation had been a regular thing with Stan this past few days, being alright one minute then suddenly lashing out and screaming. It was especially worse the first few days every time Mike tried to go near him. Eddie set his cup down on the small table in the room and sat down in the second guest chair, reaching out to pat Mike on the back gently.

“He’ll get there, Mike. But until he does, we just have to be with him.”

Mike sighed but nodded.

“Good. Also, you seriously need to go home. I’m here to relieve you of duty for a bit. So, go shower and sleep. I got this, okay?”

Mike didn’t move for a long time, just staring at Stan’s sleeping face before he muttered a soft thank you and stood up. Eddie watched him gather his things, glancing away to give them privacy as Mike leaned over to press a kiss to Stan’s forehead and whisper that he would be back.

“Call me if anything happens.”

“I will, Mike. I promise.” Eddie shifted in his seat as Mike took one last long look at Stan’s still form before turning and leaving. He sighed as he glanced over at Stan, scooting his chair close to the bed and laying his head next to his friend’s hand.

“Stan...I don’t know if you can hear me or not, but if you can, can you tell us how to make this better? I know everyone says Bill is the leader and Richie is the glue and blah blah blah, but…”

He sighed and reached over to take Stan’s hand in his. “We really need you here, with us.”

He settled in for the long wait, not noticing how tired he was until he felt his eyelids start to droop and laying his head on the bed wasn’t helping. He didn’t think he had started to doze off, but one second he was watching Stan sleep the next he opened his eyes and Stan’s green ones were watching him intently. He sat up quickly, but that had been a mistake as the movement seemed to startle Stan and he let out a yelp.

“Sorry!” Eddie tried, not meaning to be so loud. He held up his hands to show he meant no harm and only when Stan seemed to relax slightly did he lower them. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you, Stan.”

Stan continued to watch him quietly, eyes still heavy with sedation before he glanced around the room looking a little lost. When he spoke, his voice was so soft that it didn’t sound like Stan at all. “Mike? Where is Mike?”

“He went home for a bit.” Eddie explained and moved to sit back in the guest chair. “He’s been here a long time so we’ve been taking shifts so he can eat, sleep and do basic hygiene stuff.”

When Stan almost looked upset at that Eddie panicked a little. Was Stan mad Mike had left? Stan had wanted nothing to do with Mike for almost a whole week so this was a little surprising. “I can call him? If you want.”

Stan looked as if he was considering it before he shook his head, glancing down at his fingers and tugged on the small silver band around his ring finger. They were both quiet for a bit, Stan playing with ring on his finger quietly and Eddie not wanting to agitate Stan in anyway stayed silent so when Stan spoke it surprised Eddie a little bit.

“I know I’m hurting him…” Stan said softly, and Eddie knew exactly who he was talking about, but he shrugged a little to make Stan feel better. It was the wrong thing to do because Stan glared at him and Eddie hunched his shoulders like he was a kid being scolded. “Don’t lie, Eddie. I know what my reactions are doing to him. I just….ugh.”

Stan laid his head back against the mountain of pillows behind him and watched the ceiling, chewing on his bottom lip with a pained look.

“Down there…” Stan whispered. “Whatever is down there was able to take his face, Eddie. Take Mike’s face and make it so...horrifying. There were things I saw that I knew couldn’t be true, but they were right there in front of my eyes.”

He reached out to take Stan’s hand, glad when it wasn’t snatched away or taken as pity. Stan actually held his hand back as he seemed to recall what had happened. Richie had only been able to get out pieces before Stan went quiet or started to cry again, so getting anything new meant Eddie had to tread carefully.

“We’re dealing with a shapeshifter?”

Stan let out shaky breath. “I don’t think it's that simple.”

Eddie gulped and they both jumped when the door was pushed open, one of the nurses coming in with a small cup of pills and some water for him. Stan scowled at her, but she didn’t seem swayed as she handed him the small cup and looked at him expectantly.

“I don’t need these.”

“Honey, we have been over this. They are helping you and as long as it’s helping, please just make my job easier and take them.”

Eddie watched as Stan angrily took the paper cup and tipped its contents into his mouth, glaring as he swallowed the small colorful pills. The nurse pursed her lips and placed the water on the table close to the bed with a sigh.

“Thank you, Mr. Uris.”

Eddie tried to hide his smile when Stan only grunted a reply and waited until she left before raising an eyebrow at his friend. “What are they giving you?”

“God, do I have to name them all?” Stan sighed but then shrugged. “Some anxiety stuff and other things to try and keep me calm. I hate them though, they make me feel sluggish and I have no idea how they’ll interfere with my powers.”

Eddie nodded, knowing that exact fear every time he went to his therapist and they tried to prescribe him something for his panic attacks. He noticed Stan watching him and raised an eyebrow.

“Yes?”

“Nothing.”

Eddie waited a second.

“It’s just,” Stan bunched up the bed sheets, only to smooth them back over his legs again before he continued with his thought. “You were all in that sewer too, right?"

“Yeah.”

Stan’s brow furrowed. “But none of you saw anything? Nothing weird or unusual?....terrifying?”

Eddie frowned and slowly shook his head feeling kind of bad that no one else had seen what had made Stan lose his mind like that. At his answer Stan seemed to grow irritated again, going quiet as he pulled in on himself. Eddie tried to reestablish his hold on Stan’s hand, but Stan pulled his away this time and turned to look out the window instead of at Eddie.

“Stan, we don’t think you’re lying, okay? We know you must have seen something.” Eddie could tell by the way Stan’s shoulders were starting to bunch up that him talking wasn’t helping anything, but he needed Stan to know. “Seriously. We believe that you saw somethi-“

“Shut up, Eddie!” Eddie pulled away from the bed as if burned, swallowing the hurt at being yelled at. Stan still didn’t look at him but could tell he was pissed because of the way his jaw was clenched. “You guys believe me? That’s fucking great but could you try not saying it like your talking to a child or something?”

He turned to glare at Eddie and Eddie shrank down in his chair a bit. “Did you guys fucking forget I’m on this team? That I’ve seen shit too? I’m not talking about some creepy zombie or something that showed up down there. I saw my own body mutilated because I couldn’t control my phasing. I saw what I would look like if I ever miscalculated just the slightest bit. You guys can stop acting like ‘Poor Stan can’t handle whatever was down there’ because I bet you all couldn’t take it either.”

Stan turned away towards the window again and Eddie sat in stunned silence. He hadn’t meant for his words to ever sound like that, but that didn’t mean that Stan hadn’t taken them that way and his felt his cheeks burn in shame. He cleared his throat quietly and knew that Stan was listening even though he wouldn’t look at him.

“I’m sorry.” Eddie started softly. “We shouldn’t have treated you like that, but you know no one thinks of you like that, right?”

When Stan didn’t answer Eddie sighed.

“Stan, we all believe you, we’re a team and we trust each other. You’re an important part of our team and I’m not even counting how we’d all be screwed tax wise if it wasn’t for you.” Eddie was relieved when he heard Stan snort and a small smile curve on his lips. “But I’m serious. If we didn’t have you, we’d be up a creek for a million reasons.”

Stan glanced over at him, then leaned to the side of his bed to he could pull up the remote. “Want to see what kind of shitty day time TV they have on right now?”

Eddie grinned and gave a small nod, turning his chair so he could see the TV as well when Stan turned it on.

“Hey Stan?” Stan gave a questioning hum, starting to flip through the channels and Eddie played with the hem of his shirt a little nervously. “Can I tell the others what you saw? We really need to know everything if we’re going to try and fight whatever it is down there.”

Stan continued to click the remote at a rapid speed, Eddie not even sure if he could see what was on before he changed it but after a moment Stan settled on an episode of Judge Judy. The courtroom theme filled the hospital room and they watched the opening half of the show, Eddie not wanting to push the question if Stan didn’t want to answer.

Judge Judy ruled in favor of the mother who brought her baby daddy to court, the next case about to start when Stan spoke.

“If you want to you can.”

Eddie didn’t dare to even look at Stan but gave a small nod as they continued to watch.

“Thank you.”

 

* * *

 

Bev groaned when she finished sewing the last sequin onto the bodice of the dress, clenching her aching fingers and cracking her knuckles loudly as she stood back to get a good look at the finished piece.

“Perfect.” She breathed and smiled, moving over to mess with the hem a little but otherwise loving it. She picked up her sewing supplies and carried it over to the large table in her studio, her ballet flats making almost no noise against the wood floor as she moved. She set her supplies basket down and stretched, reaching up to the sky and arching her back as she felt her spine pop satisfyingly.

Hard work felt good.

With this dress finished she only had two more outfits to do for her show and then she’d be done, but that dress had been the biggest obstacle, so she felt accomplished.

“I think I can call it a day.” She grinned as she started to clean up. “I earned it.”

As she leaned over the table to start picking up the small scraps of fabric she had cut out and froze when she heard a noise off in the other room. Bev straightened up and frowned, listening for the noise again but was only met with silence. She waited for a bit, then shrugged and went back to cleaning, throwing the scrapes in the bin and organizing the threads when she heard the noise again.

Footsteps.

She looked over at the door that led to the dressing room, they sounded heavy, like a man’s before they stopped. Bev felt her heart race a little because she knew she was the only one here, sending her assistant and seamstress home hours ago. 

Had Ben come early to pick her up? No. He would have texted.

Bev took a deep breath. “Hello?”

Nothing.

“This is a private studio! No one is allowed in here without clearance.” Bev yelled, knowing that if there was someone in the dressing room it had to be someone who had the key code. Unless someone had gotten the key code from one of her workers…

She frowned when the silence continued and shook off her nerves before striding towards the door confidently, gripping the handle to yank the door open forcefully. She heard the wood crack as the force of her pull tore the hinges almost clean off, but she paid it no mind as she peered inside the room.

The dressing room was dark, the only thing in the mirrors on the wall was her dark silhouette in the light of the door and Bev quickly smacked her hand against the wall to flip the switch. When light flooded the room and her eyes adjusted, she scanned the area immediately, but found nothing.

Nothing except a lonely red heart shaped balloon in the corner, weighted by a small black box.

“What the fuck?” She muttered, the red balloon causing her to falter for a second before she moved towards it. When she got closer, she noticed it wasn’t anything special, just a cheap nylon balloon one could buy at any party store, but the box was different.

The box was velvet and the size of it could fit in her palm. The kind of box people usually gave rings in.

“Surprise.”

Bev whipped around, fists going up immediately on instinct and she glared at the intruder before she realized who it was. Her shoulders dropped in relief and she let out a choked laugh, hand going to her forehead as she tried to stop her heart from beating out of her chest.

“Jesus, Ben! What the hell?”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Ben’s smile was soft and only then did she realize how dressed up he was, the crisp lines of his dark tux looking beautiful against his tanned skin. She raised an eyebrow and gestured to his attire with an amused look.

“I didn’t realize movie night in required full black tie.” She joked, blinking when Ben only just kept smiling at her. Something about him seemed off, like when he tried to hide that he was sad with a fake smile, but this seemed different. “You okay, babe?”

“I got you something.”

When he gestured with his hand behind her, Bev turned to look at the balloon and box again an emotion she didn’t want to think about growing in her chest at the sight. What was going on? Bev had fought zombies before but suddenly this little black box seemed like the most ominous thing in the world.

“It’s something I know you’ve always wanted.”

She didn’t turn back around to face him, but her lips thinned as that feeling of unease that had started to creep up on her spiked. Ben, Kay and her had talked about marriage once and she had put the thought out of everyone’s mind when she said that getting married right now wasn’t in her plans for the future.

Secretly, she had always wanted a wedding and a nice family, but every time she thought of it, _his_ face came to mind and she would immediately push it all back down.

But she had never told Ben that. She hadn’t told _anyone_ that.

She curled her hand into a fist, ready to start swinging on whatever was in the room with her when a sharp sound caught her attention. She glanced over to the side where a small basket that hadn’t been there before lay, filled with soft fluffy blankets.

Crying.

A baby crying.

Bev moved before she could even think, running over to the basket and pulling back the blankets to find what had to be impossible. She felt her knees go weak at the sight of a small little newborn nestled in the blankets, crying and flailing its arms as it tried to find someone to help it with its needs. Bev felt faint as its perfectly round face grew red in distress, the tuft of strawberry blonde hair on top of its head making her feel slightly ill. She glanced behind her quickly, seeing the fake Ben still smiling softly at her from across the room, before she reached down to pick up the squalling child, careful of her strength against its delicate body.

The infant quieted immediately, large blue eyes opening to look up at her and she suddenly felt like crying because this wasn’t fair. She wanted this. What the fuck? God, what was happening? She wanted this so much.

She cradled the baby to her chest, tears starting to make their way down her cheeks when she felt arms wrap around her waist and hold her tight. She tried to jerk away, careful not to hurt the baby, but the arms stayed tight even against her strength and she felt the thing lay its chin on her shoulder.

Help! She needed help!

“Look at you.” Bev’s heart stopped at that horrifyingly familiar voice and she started to shake, clutching the baby tighter to her. “Look how much you’ve grown.”

She was suddenly thirteen again and dreading the night when he would come home from work, fifteen when she finally fought back and was punished severely for it, seventeen when her powers had finally come in and she’d hit him too hard.

This was impossible. This wasn’t happening. Bev let out a weak cry when she felt a calloused hand run up her bare arm and against her neck to play with a red ring of hair.

He was dead. He was dead. Alvin Marsh was dead!

“Now, why you fighting this so hard, Bevvie?” His voice cooed in her ear making Bev want to vomit. “You could have it all. Just like your ungrateful mother. Now, now. Don’t cry. I hate it when my girls cry.”

Bev shook badly, her whole body quaking even though she couldn’t move a single muscle to get away and she tried to yell for help, but it only came out a whimper. She felt those fingers wrap around her neck and squeeze, the strength unlike anything Alvin Marsh ever had.

A cry sounded out and she remembered she had the baby in her arms, she needed to get it to safety, but when she glanced down she let out a horrified scream. What had been a sweet beautiful baby now resembled a disgusting twisted tumor with limbs. Its skin was an awful grey color, it’s legs too long and its arms too short, while its face was the most terrifying thing about it. Its eyes were gone, only empty sockets while its mouth hung open wide and unnatural as it screamed at her. 

She tried to drop it, her arms moving slightly, but she found that the thing’s body had become attached to her, almost fusing with the skin of her arms as it continued to shriek terribly. Bev felt the hand on her throat grow tighter and with every ounce of strength she had she pushed back.

 

* * *

 

 

Richie gave a wave to the nurse as he walked by the front desk to the floor, sighing when she called him out by name, and he walked backwards back to her. She looked unimpressed, thin eyebrow raised with her arms crossed and white sneaker tapping. It reminded him of Eds, except Eddie was far cuter when annoyed.

“Yes, ma’am?”

“What is it you have there?” She nodded to the large brown paper bag in his hands that had the Panera logo in bold green and black letters. He held up the bag in question and pointed to it, making sure to look as innocent as possible.

“This? Oh, Suzy. Don’t worry. It’s just hard-core drugs.”

She didn’t even crack a smile. Tough old bird.

“Mr. Tozier, you know the rules…”

He rolled his eyes toward the ceiling and nodded quickly so she wouldn’t give him her spiel. “Yes, yes. I _know_. There are no sharp objects in here, nothing that could be considered remotely alcoholic or anything that could actually be addictive. Unless you count my bacon turkey bravo.”

“I’ll have to search it.”

Richie let out a loud groan of frustration but handed the bag to her anyway, it wasn’t worth it to get security called on him. He watched as she searched through it, frowning when she gave the potato chip bag an extra-long look but after a bit he was cleared, and he got his goods back. He stopped outside Stan’s room and took a deep breath as he ran a hand through his hair, hoping it didn’t look too crazy.

Just because him and Eddie were just friends right now didn’t mean he couldn’t try to look nice in front of the guy.

When he had officially fixed his hair, or made it worse, Richie pushed his glasses up further on his nose and reached out to knock. He waited a tick before he heard the door click open and those sweet brown eyes looked out.

God, he was in love.

He held out the bag to Eddie, showcasing it proudly as he pressed his tongue against his teeth for a French accent. “I have brought sustenance for our dear Staniel. As well as chicken and rice soup, yuck, and a sandwich for moi.”

“You’re a weirdo.” Eddie stated plainly, but Richie could see the way the corner of his mouth tipped up and he held the door open wider for Richie to enter. Richie let out a dumb giddy laugh and danced his way into the room, surprised when he saw Stan asleep in his bed.

He never knew seeing Stan sleep would make him feel so sad and he turned to look at Eddie in worry. “Sedation?”

He felt the tightening in his chest ease when Eddie shook his head and with a smile told him that Stan had fallen asleep on his own. Richie sighed softly and moved to set the bag quietly on the table, shifting through it as quietly as he could so he wouldn’t wake his friend.

He handed Eddie his soup and a plastic spoon, moving to sit down on the small uncomfortable couch they had in the room with his sandwich. He felt a happy thrill when Eddie took a seat next to him instead of picking the far side of the couch or the chair next to the bed. They ate quietly, glancing over at Stan’s still form every now and then to make sure they weren’t disturbing him, Richie wiping some thousand island dressing from his mouth before clearing his throat.

“Um. I want to apologize.”

When Eddie looked confused Richie screwed his eyes closed as he had to think back to the stupid thing he’d said. “In the sewer...before we found Stan. I wasn’t-I didn’t mean anything by it, but I know how it came across and I’m sorry about that.”

“Oh.”

When he opened his eyes, Eddie was stirring his soup slowly with a small frown but then shrugged lightly and offered Richie a small weak smile. “It’s okay. I know you didn’t mean it. I know I’m not the richest guy in New York and that doesn’t bother me.”

Richie watched as Eddie licked his top lip, then sighed. “It’s just when (you) say stuff about it, cause like I know you’re joking but sometimes I worry that’s what you really think? Like when you said, ‘Eddie’s so poor he hangs his toilet paper out to dry.’”

Eddie had tried to mimic him, the voice all wrong but the hand gestures were spot on and if Richie hadn’t felt like such an asshole right then he would have been proud.

“Yeah. Again, sorry about that.”

Eddie smiled and shook his head. “It’s fine, Richie. I’m just sensitive about it from you because it’s (you).”

Richie watched as Eddie went back to his soup, like the conversation was done and it was all water under the bridge, but it felt wrong. Richie shifted a little closer, waiting until Eddie looked up from his soup before taking the other man’s hand in his and giving it a gentle squeeze.

“Eddie, you know that I think you going out on your own for your business is incredible, right? Like really fucking cool and amazing. Like,” Richie took a breath as he tried find the right words for this. “You knew what you wanted to do, and you went for it, no matter what anyone said you were going to achieve it. It was really crazy brave of you.”

Eddie kept glancing between their hands and Richie’s face, looking unsure of what exactly he wanted to focus on before giving Richie a watery smile. “Brave can be another word for stupid.”

Richie couldn’t help but laugh, bringing their joined hands to his mouth so he could muffle it and letting his lips graze the back of Eddie’s hand. He felt Eddie stiffen but didn’t pull away, so Richie kept their hands pressed to his face.

“Eds, we all dress up in costume and fight other superpowered freaks. I think all of us qualify as a little stupid.” He felt his heart beat faster when he felt Eddie’s thumb stroke his cheek a couple times. “But going after your dreams? Never stupid, only brave.”

Richie could barely breathe when Eddie pulled their hands away from Richie’s face and brought it to his own, placing the softest kiss against Richie’s knuckles.

“Thank you, Rich.” He felt the soft warm air of the words against his hand and he wanted nothing more than to haul Eddie over to him. Kiss the god damn life out of this amazing guy who had his heart 

“Eds…” He shifted closer, about to jump out of his skin when Eddie turned towards him so their thighs could press against each other. “I reall-“

“Oh my god. If you two seriously try to make out while I’m in the room I’m calling the cops.”

Both Eddie and him turned to look at the hospital bed, Stan’s annoyed glare looking right back at them and Richie had never wanted to kick his best friend more when Eddie shot up off the couch.

“H-hey, Stan! You’re up!”

“Obviously.” Stan replied, but his eyes stayed on Richie even as Eddie started to pack up his stuff. Richie glared back at his friend before getting up and trying to talk Eddie into staying.

“You don’t have to go.” He tried, feeling crushed when Eddie shook his head.

“No, no. I really should. You’re here now so I really should get going. I promised the guys at the shop I’d stop by anyway, so I need to do that.”

Eddie was like a hummingbird, flitting around the room checking stuff while his face was a bright crimson. He made sure to give Stan a pat on the shoulder before moving towards the door, Richie following him out in the hall before he could escape completely.

“Eddie,” He reached out to grab Eddie’s arm gently, the other turning to look at him with such a nervous expression that Richie almost felt bad. “I wanted to ask you something before asshole in there was, well, himself.”

Eddie huffed a laugh but nodded. “Alright. What’s up?”

“Um, so, remember the Christina Wood gala?”

Richie waited and was relieved when recognition sparked in Eddie’s eyes. It was a gala that Richie always had to attend because of work, and he would always take at least one of his friends as his date because it was just easier that way. But before everything that had happened, Eddie and him had planned to go together this year...as a couple.

When Eddie stayed quiet, Richie pushed forward.

“I was wanting to know if you...wanted me to find another date?”

“What!”

Richie pulled away quickly at the alarmed and irritated look on Eddie’s face. Eddie must have realized his reaction was a little much because he quickly glanced down at the floor and tried to make his face as neutral as possible which he failed at miserably.

“I mean, if that’s what you want you can.” He muttered to the floor.

Richie couldn’t help the brilliant smile that slid into his face and he reached out with his foot to kick lightly at Eddie’s calf. “What I want is to go with (you), if that’s what you want.”

Eddie still wouldn’t look at him, but after years of knowing the guy, Richie could tell he was grinning. “Yeah, I still want to go with you.”

“Neat-O!” Richie chirped, reaching over and wrapping Eddie in a big hug, about to burst with happiness when Eddie hugged back. When they pulled away, Richie gave Eddie’s shoulder one more pat just as an excuse to keep touching him. “So, I’ll see you later?”

Eddie nodded. “Absolutely.”

Richie watched as Eddie left until he disappeared around a corner and he took a moment to lean against the door with a happy sigh. He watched the hallway wall dreamily for a few seconds before making his way back into the room, frowning at Stan digging through the bag for his food.

“You are the worst friend ever.”

All Stan did was roll his eyes in response, pulling out his sandwich and bag of chips and moving back to his bed to sit down on it cross legged. He was swimming in what had to be Mike’s ISU sweat shirt and gym shorts. He looked so much smaller huddled up on the bed.

“Seriously! I think we were about to kiss. I was about to kiss Eddie, Stan. Eddie!”

Stan sighed loudly, taking apart his sandwich so he could rebuild it the way he wanted it: always vegetables, cheese then bread and none of it could be poking too far out on the sides.

“Yes, Dumbass. I know you guys were about to kiss and you know I more than anyone hope you two fix this thing, but I’m not about to pretend to be asleep while you suck face.”

Richie scowled. “You’re a bad friend.”

Stan just shrugged as he lifted his sandwich up. “Oh well. I’ll just have to live with that.”

Richie kicked at the bed, earning a glare from Stan, before sitting down in the chair next to it and sighing. He let his head lean back against the chair, listening to the quiet sounds of Stan eating his food as he closed his eyes.

He heard the crinkle of paper being balled up after a bit and he listed his head to see Stan toss the paper at the garbage, making it perfectly. The fucker.

“I told Eddie a little bit about what happened down there.”

Stan said it so nonchalantly that Richie almost didn’t realize the importance of what he was saying, but when his words registered, he sat up quickly in the chair.

“You did?” Stan refused to look at him but nodded.

Richie was surprised that he didn’t feel hurt by that and maybe if it had been a few years back, before he had gotten closer to Eddie, he would have been jealous. But right now he just felt relieved, at least Stan had talked to someone and it was someone in their circle.

“Alright. Good.” Richie said slowly, pushing his glasses up and leaning forward, elbows on his knees. “Can the rest of us know or…?"

Stan twisted his mouth slightly, turning to look at Richie with such a scared look that Richie was up and out of his chair before he knew it. He sat down on the foot of the bed so he could face Stan and reached out to squeeze one of his sock covered feet. His friend was quiet, then sighed as he started his story, Richie sitting there holding his foot throughout the entire thing and only moved forward to hug Stan when the blond gave him the okay.

“Shit.” Richie breathed against Stan’s hair, holding his friend just a bit tighter before pulling away to look at him. “That’s why you’re weird with Mike.”

“Ugh. Please don’t remind me how much of an ass I’m being to the person I love.” Stan groaned, surprising Richie when he leaned forward to press his face in Richie’s shoulder.

“You aren’t being an ass. Your mind is telling you to be scared because it wants to survive. I’m sure if Mike knew he’d understand.” He felt Stan’s whole body move up in a giant breath, then go loose with the exhale and Stan say back looking a little more composed. “Feeling a little better?”

Stan nodded, leaning back so he could lay against his mountain of pillows. “So how long until the next shift arrives?”

Richie shrugged. “Bev said she wanted to come by around seven, before visiting hours are over and I’m sure Mike wants to come back. If you want him to that is.”

“I do.” Stan muttered, picking at his sleeve.

“Well then,” Richie said with a smile. “You have to deal with just me till then.”

Stan cracked a small smile and they sat talking like they hadn’t done in years. Richie had just ordered their dinner when he felt his phone buzz, frowning when Bill’s name came up.

Bill never called on personal cells.

“Yellow?” He answered, holding up a hand to Stan and mouth the name ‘Bill’ at him, knowing Stan found it weird also by the furrowed brow and frown. “What can I do for you, Big Bill?”

“Richie. Bev’s been attacked.”

Richie felt his heart stop at the words and he almost lost his grip on the phone before he tightened his hold. He stood up immediately, starting to pace around the small hospital room, ignoring when Stan asked what was happening.

“What do you mean attacked? Is she okay? What the fuck, Bill?” Bev had to be okay. She was the strongest human on earth, one didn’t just attack Beverly Marsh easily. If Bill was calling that meant something had happened. Something had happened to Bev. “Shit!”

“Richie, calm down.”

“Fuck you, Bill! You can’t just call and say that then tell me to calm down.” His panic was making him frustrated and he could hear Bill sigh over the line.

“Richie, she’s okay.” He paused, like he was listening to something. “I mean, she’s not physically hurt.”

“What the fuck does that even mean, Bill?”

“We think it’s the thing that’s taking the children, she keeps talking about a balloon and a baby.”

Richie turned to look at Stan, his friend looking a little paler because he could hear Bill’s word clear enough. So, it was the same thing that Stan had seen. Shit.

“Why was she in the sewers?” Richie demanded, like it was Bill’s fault she had gone down there. He grit his teeth when Bill paused again, talking off to the side with someone before he came back to the phone.

“She wasn’t in the sewers, Richie. The thing found her at her studio. It knew who she was.”

Richie felt light headed, stumbling a little as he sat down in the chair roughly. His vision started to tunnel, and he could faintly hear both Stan and Bill calling his name, shaking his head as he tried to swallow the overwhelming fear of what that meant.

“What?” He asked weakly into the phone, looking up at Stan who seemed just as scared.

“Is Eddie with you still? I’ve gotten ahold of everyone except him. Mike’s on his way to the hospital now.”

Richie’s stomach went cold. “No, he’s not with us. He left a while ago.”

He heard Bill swear and tell Georgie to start getting ready to go, his tone authoritative but it shook slightly with what Richie could tell was fear. “Richie, I want you to stay there until Mike gets there. I don’t want anyone of us alone right now.”

“B-But Eddie’s alone! He was going to go to his shop to work on some stuff.”

“I’m sure he’s fine, Richie. He has his whole staff there, but just in case Georgie and I will go down and check.”

“I wanna come too!”

“I said stay with Stan!” The snap in tone said there was no room for argument and Richie grit his teeth, muttering that he would stay until Mike came before hanging up.

Across Manhattan and over into Brooklyn, Eddie sighed as he slid himself under Mrs. Jenkins old Buick, frowning when he found a good couple years of rust.

“Geeze, when was the last time she had this thing checked?” He moved so he could start to work on the duct tank, glad everyone had gone home so he could work in peace. He had just started when he heard footsteps, then the sound of the bell over the door in front in waiting room ring.

Eddie frowned, knowing he had sent the rest of the guys home and hoped they hadn’t forgotten to lock up. The last thing he wanted to deal with was an irate customer who thought just because the door was unlocked meant they could have their car checked past hours. He slid out from under Mrs. Jenkins car and sat up, a little spooked when he saw the waiting was empty through the large windows in the garage.

No, he could have sworn he heard someone.

He wiped his hands on his pants, grease smearing over the blue fabric as he slowly moved closer to the office. If it was some stupid burglar, they picked the wrong small auto shop to try and rob but even as he stepped closer to the waiting room window, he saw nothing.

He had left his phone and communicator in the office and he thought about going and getting them when he heard the footsteps again.

Only this time right behind him.

He scowled, letting his energy flow slightly into his hand before he whipped around fist raised and almost gasped with who he was faced with.

“D-Dad?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- Tumor baby
> 
> -It transforms into Alvin Marsh and holds onto Bev from behind.
> 
> \- Tumor baby fuses to Bev's skin
> 
> -Eddie's flashback of beating up Henry.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thanks to [Oldguybones](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oldguybones) for betaing this!
> 
> Warning for Chapter: Graphic Images and Sex. See below for more details.

 

 

The last image of his father that Eddie could remember was him leaning down to press a kiss to Eddie’s hair, the smell of his aftershave something comforting as Eddie ate his cereal.

His smile had seemed different than normal that day, sad and broken, as he pushed Eddie’s hair back from his forehead, but Eddie hadn’t been old enough to notice.

“You’ll be a good boy, Eddie? Listen to your teachers and Mommy.”

Eddie remembered thinking that he was always a good boy, but he had nodded anyway as he shoved another spoonful of mini wheats into his mouth.

“I love you so much, Eddie.”

His father had given Eddie his bracelet that day, it was far too big on Eddie’s small wrist, but Eddie had beamed up at his dad anyway.

He had always thought his dad’s bracelet was pretty.

“I love you too, Daddy.”

Frank Kaspbrak had disappeared that afternoon, everything in his room exactly as he had left it that morning expect for the gold pocket watch Eddie’s mother had given to him on Christmas a few years back. He remembered police asking him questions about his father while his mother stood behind them ever watching.

Eddie has asked God every night for his father to come home.

A year and a half later the police had closed Frank Kaspbrak’s case.

Eddie felt faint as he stared at the man a few feet away from him, not a day older than how he had looked when he left. The smile was the same as he remembered, soft and easy, as he looked at Eddie with such love it made Eddie’s legs shake from too much emotion.

“Dad?” His voice croaked, the buildup of power dropping immediately and his hands hung normal and limp at his sides.

“Eddie…” His father took a step towards him, hand reaching out. “Look at how much you’ve grown.”

“What,” Eddie still couldn’t get his legs to move properly and he watched as his dad came closer, soon close enough that he could grip Eddie’s shoulders tightly. “What are you doing here?”

He wanted to be mad. Furious at his father for leaving them for so long with only a small note left for his mom, but he couldn’t do it. Not right now, not when he was so alone and when his dad pulled him in for a hug, Eddie folded into it desperately. He clung to his dad’s strong back, trying not to cry but the tears flowed out anyway.

“Oh, Eddie.” His dad’s voice hushed and soothed, strong hand coming up to cradle the back of Eddie’s head as he continued to hold his son. “I’m so sorry it took me so long to come back to you.”

Eddie heaved in a shaky breath, his nose starting to leak. His dad still smelled of the same aftershave and old leather, which was odd considering he had been in space for the past twenty-something years, but Eddie was too raw to care.

“It’s okay, Dad.” Eddie sniffed, burying his face into that wide shoulder that he remembered so well. “It’s okay. You’re here now.”

He heard his father hum softly in agreement, then his hold on Eddie tightened a fraction too much. “I’m just so sorry I didn’t come in time.”

Eddie blinked, his eyelashes heavy with tears and he frowned at his father’s word. He pulled back, surprised when his father held him tight still, but after a moment let him go enough so he could look into his eyes. “Enough time?”

His heart started race. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? You aren’t dying, are you?”

Even though Frank Kaspbrak shook his head at that, his expression remained sad. “No, Eddie. I’m not.”

Eddie let out a breath of relief. “Oh, good. Cause the way you made it sound, it seemed like-“

“You are.”

Eddie froze, his entire body seeming to go numb as he stared at his father’s mournful face, tears coming to those otherworldly soft lilac colored eyes. He could barely feel his father’s hands move to clasp his upper arms as his heart started to beat erratically, his breathing starting to come out in bursts instead of evenly.

_No.  Don’t panic!_

Eddie moved away from his father, both hands going to run through his hair and pull as he tried to think about this. “W-What do you mean I’m dying? How? I feel fine. I had a physical just last month and the doctor said I was fine!”

He could feel his hands start to shake and his body grow warm.

_Calm down!_

“Eddie,” His dad reached for him again and Eddie let him cradle his face between his hands. “Your body is too weak. Your blood is only half Bo’wérn, your human half can’t take it.”

Eddie’s eye widened as tears started to slip down his cheeks in a steady stream. He had always wondered how his body functioned when he was essentially two different species; he had always worried that something might go wrong. Something might happen. But to hear it confirmed made his heart constrict and he let out a gasping sob.

“What do I do?” He whispered.

“I’m afraid nothing.” His dad said quietly, and Eddie let out a whimper. “If I had come sooner there might have been, but I’m afraid I’m too late.”

The shaking was getting worse, the ability to catch a deep breath escaping him and he could feel his eyes start to change from brown to bright white gold. He needed to stay calm, but he had no idea how to do that when he’d just been told he was going to die. Eddie curled his hands into fists to try and stop the shaking, the warmth of his body starting to become uncomfortable as he started to sink to the floor.

He landed on his knees roughly, hands going to his head as he tried to work through the coping strategies his therapist had suggested. Five things he saw! But when he opened his eyes all he could see was the garage filled with the blinding light his body was giving off.

“No!” He gasped. “No, no, no, no!”

_Stop! Calm down! Don’t do this!_

He would blow up the entire neighborhood if he didn’t, but that thought just made it worse. Eddie could barely breathe, his throat feeling like it was the size of a pin, crying out when he felt the cement below him start to crack and scorch from the energy around him. Eddie could hear something groan and collapse and for the first time in his life he prayed someone would kill him so that he didn’t destroy everyone in Brooklyn.

“Eddie!”

Eddie yelled when he heard what he thought was Bill’s voice, the idea of his friend coming into the room with his powers like this making his panic worse.

_Please don’t kill Bill!_ He begged himself and then he heard another familiar voice call his name and if he could still produce tears he would have started crying again. Eddie only heard a sharp snapping sound before his entire body was engulfed in ice and he knew for certain Richie was there. The thick ice coating only lasted for a second, but the momentary sharp sting of the cold shocked Eddie for a moment long enough for him to focus on something else for a split second. When the ice melted, it immediately evaporating around him Eddie looked up into Richie’s concerned blue eyes.

“R-Rich?” He gasped.

“Shit, Eds.” Richie immediately formed ice around his hands so he could reach forward and grab Eddie’s face. Eddie could hear the hiss of steam as Richie placed his ice hands on his cheeks and he wanted more than anything to hold on to the man. “Look at me, okay? Just look at me. Focus on me and breathe.”

Eddie tried to nod and watched as Richie took a deep breath while Eddie reached out to place his hands on Richie’s forearms, not noticing the wince Richie made at the contact. He did his best to follow Richie’s breathing, his breathing sharp and shallow as he tried to gasp his way through. He watched Richie’s eyes, staring intently at the blue he could see the almost invisible ring where Richie’s contacts ended. He went through all the different colors he thought he saw in those eyes.

Navy.

Royal.

Sapphire.

Imperial.

Berlin.

Marine.

When he had reached the end of his dark blue color knowledge his eyes went to Richie’s cheeks to start counting freckles. Forty-nine. Richie has forty-nine freckles on his cheeks and Eddie wanted to kiss every single one of them. The more he tried to breathe with Richie the easier it became to control himself, his body starting to cool as his heart rate slowly returned to normal.

He sniffed and took one last shuddering breath, finally back down to his normal baseline temperature before he realized that the ice around Richie’s hands had melted a while ago.

“Shit, Rich!” He pulled away from the other, cringing when he remembered he had grabbed onto Richie’s bare forearms as well. Sure enough angry red blistering hand prints were around Richie’s upper forearms, his palms a violent shade of red as well from where Eddie’s skin had touched them without the ice. Eddie knew they would blister as well. “God, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine, Eds.” Richie smiled even though Eddie could tell it hurt him to move his hands. “I’ll go to the med bay when we finish here, but we should get you some clothes first.”

Eddie glanced down at himself and groaned, shifting so he could cover himself with his hands.  “Not again.”

Stupid regular clothes not being able to hold up against the burning power of a star.

“Hey, don't worry. It’s a great view.” Richie laughed when Eddie scowled at him and tried to reach out and hit him without exposing himself. “Anyway, we need to find Bill and Georgie too, they went after that thing while I put you on ice.”

“Thing?” Eddie frowned, then gasped and frantically looked around. “My dad! My dad is here, Richie!”

He scowled when Richie shook his head.

“No. No he’s not, Eddie.” Eddie started to stand, ready to argue that his father was in fact back from space when he saw Richie’s sad expression. “The thing that tried to get Stan in the sewer? It attacked Bev earlier this evening.”

“What?” Eddie hissed, no longer caring about modesty as he dropped them in shock. “Is she okay? Why was she-“

“She wasn’t in the sewers.” Richie interrupted, pushing up off his knee to stand up, frowning down at his hand that probably still stung. “She was at her studio; it came to her studio because it knew who she was. Just like it came to you at your shop.”

Eddie stared at Richie wide eyed and it took him a moment to find his voice. “That thing...took the form of my dad?”

Richie nodded solemnly. “And Mike, Ben and Bev’s bastard of a dad too apparently.”

Eddie gulped remembering how tight and close he had been held by what he thought was his dad, how he had let whatever that thing was in his space because he let his emotions get the best of him. He froze and quickly side-eyed Richie, if it was Richie and the other immediately seemed to understand what Eddie was thinking.

“Eds, it’s me. Really me.” When Eddie wasn’t convinced ‘Richie’ held up his hands to show he meant no harm. “I just used my powers on you, even if this thing is a shapeshifter, I don’t think it can take on our powers. If it can we are screwed.”

It was sort of a good point, but Eddie was still wary, and ‘Richie’ sighed. “Ask me anything only you and I would know.”

Eddie kept his eye on the other while he thought, taking a sharp breath in through his nose before turning to fully face the man.

“What did you want to be when you grew up until you were ten?”

‘Richie’s’ face went scarlet and Eddie felt a little more reassured when the other grit his teeth and refused to make eye contact with him.

“Are you serious?”

Eddie let his hand start to glow. “I will blast you if you don’t answer in the next five seconds.”

“Jesus! Okay!” ‘Richie’ groaned, putting his hands on his hips and he looked mortified having to say this out loud. “When I was growing up, I wanted to be She-Ra, the Princess of Power cause she had a kickass sword and knew how to fight.”

Eddie raised his chin so he could stare the other down. “And after that?”

“You are so mean, Eds.” ‘Richie’ sighed. “After that I wanted to be her boyfriend.”

“Because?”

“Ugh.” Blue eyes rolled upward, and he only stared at the ceiling as he admitted this. “Cause I like a person who can take charge. In life and….in the...bedroom.”

Eddie let his hand glow for a second longer before he powered down and relaxed, a small smile coming to his lip as he watched how flustered Richie was. “For a guy who talks about sex all the time that really gets you doesn’t it?”

Richie glared at him. “You’re a bastard.”

Eddie nodded. “Yeah, but you like me anyway.”

“That I do, Eds. That I do.” He smiled and then jerked his head. “Come on, let's get you at least something to wear and hope Bill and Georgie found that fucker.”

 

* * *

 

“I said stop!” Bill shouted, ignoring the people on the street as he chased after the man he had found in the garage with Eddie. He had to keep reminding himself that this thing wasn’t a man as he let Silver wrap around his wrist and extend into a long rope.

God, she was severely overestimating his lassoing skills.

He felt Silver vibrate softly in offense and he gasped out an apology as he continued to sprint after the creature that seemed to only pick up speed any time Bill got closer. When the thing disappeared behind a corner, Bill grit his teeth as his tennis shoes dug into gravel when he tried to turn.

He panted, his breath escaping him as he stared at the empty alleyway in front of him.

“What the hell?” He scowled, knowing there was no possible way that thing could have gotten away without just vanishing into thin air. He felt Silver vibrate against his arm and he hushed her gently as he took a few steps into the opening of the dead end, frowning when there wasn’t even a trace left that someone had been there.

He felt Silver vibrate again, this time a little more intensely and he looked down at her confused. “What are you doing? What is it?”

It was only then that Bill noticed how quiet the street had become and he turned around quickly, running back out to find that the once populated streets of Brooklyn were a ghost town.

“Shit.” Bill reached up to his ear and clicked his communicator on. “Tidal wave? Speaker? Come in. I lost the suspect.”

He felt a cold shiver run down his spine when all he heard in his ear was static. That was impossible. There was no way their tech wasn’t working in the middle of a metropolitan area like Brooklyn and he turned the communicator on and off a couple of times just to make sure.

Static.

More static.

Bill let out a frustrated growl as he glanced around the empty streets. He wondered if the streets were really empty or if whatever that creature was had put him under something, making him think they were. If that was true, he was glad he wasn’t in uniform because no one needed to see Ranger, leader of the Guild, acting out of odds. The thing already knew who they were so Bill going after it without a mask wasn’t a worry anymore and he let Silver slither up around his arm like a snake, coiling around his bicep and ready to move if they were attacked.

He walked down the sidewalk, even the tall apartment buildings and store windows were black with inactivity. He tried his communicator again, sighing when still it was nothing but static and jumped about a foot in the air when he felt a hand lay on his shoulder.

Bill whipped around, Silver knowing what to do as she transformed into a katana and slid easily into his palm. He moved into an attack stance, pressing the blade of Silver against the person’s throat, only to gasp when he met his brother’s eyes.

“Georgie?”

Georgie held up his hands, glancing at the blade with a little bit of amusement. “Yeah, hi. Sorry, my communicator went out.”

Bill was about to call Silver back when he frowned.

Shapeshifter.

He pressed the blade a little firmer against what looked like Georgie’s neck, staring into those identical blue eyes. ‘Georgie’s’ eyes widened a bit, his hands raising in the air as he glanced back at Bill unsure. “Bill?”

Bill made sure his grip was steady. “When we were little, we used to make something together. What was it?”

Bill made sure to watch every expression that crossed whoever this was face, confusion, which made Bill hitch the blade a little closer, then a sort of recognition and smile. ‘Georgie’ smiled, nodding best he could without the blade cutting into his neck as he answered.

“We used to make planes.” ‘Georgie leaned back a little when Bill scowled. “But! But...I had gotten this book at the library I really liked about boats, after that all we made were boats.”

“Boats?” Bill questioned with a hiss. “That’s your answer?”

“Yeah, Bill. That’s my answer.”

Bill took a deep breath, then told Silver to back off, letting her wrap around his waist as he took a step back and relaxed.

“Sorry, Georgie. We can’t be too careful.”

“No, I get it. It’s smart. Come up with a question tha-“ Georgie seemed to choke, eyes wide and that’s when Bill looked down to see large claw like fingers jutting out of his brother’s stomach. All Bill could hear was a screeching siren in his ears as the claws were ripped out, blood spurting everywhere and Georgie fell to the asphalt in a heap of limbs. A tall ugly creature dressed in white stood by Georgie’s body and grinned, almost looking a little like…

A clown.

“Georgie!” He screamed, his body finally unfreezing as Silver sprang to life and he ran at the thing with a broadsword.

The creature was quick, almost seeming to dance away from Bill every time he swung at it. Tears started to cloud Bill’s eyes as he continued to try and attack. When the thing jumped back far enough, Bill chanced a look back at his brother, Georgie’s hand twitching slightly and Bill knew it was not smart. He should stay and fight this thing before it got away, but Georgie…

He made up his mind and ran towards his brother, Silver wrapping around his shoulders as he fell to his knees by Georgie’s body and pulled it close. He couldn’t breathe right as a sob worked its way up this throat as he stared down at Georgie’s open dull blue eyes.

“No, no, no!” Bill sobbed, pressing a desperate kiss to his brother’s soft blond hair. “Please not again! Please, Georgie! Hades! Help!”

His cries echoed down the empty street, Georgie remaining still and lifeless in his arms as Bill pulled his brother closer. He felt his clothes grow wet from Georgie’s wound; the smell of blood thick in the air when he saw something white in the corner of his eye.

Bill grit his teeth against the pain he felt in his chest, tears dripping down onto Georgie’s face and he held his brother tighter.

When he heard the creature start to laugh, he let his sorrow push him to his feet, laying Georgie down gently before calling Silver to his hand. She vibrates violently, feeling his distress, as she transformed into a sledgehammer and he ran towards it screaming.

He swung with all his might, once catching the creature in the shoulder, it letting out an ungodly shriek before it lashed out with the claws that still had Georgie’s blood on them. Bill cried out when the tip of one claw slashed across his face, stumbling back a little and that was all the creature needed.

It pounced on Bill, the ugly painted red lips grinning before it opened its mouth wide-then even wider.

Bill could barely see through the tears and blood in his eyes, but he was certain as that thing held his head tightly between its hands, he could see its jaw start to drop and its mouth open wider. He felt his heart leap into his throat at the now millions of sharp yellow teeth as his vision cleared a little and he tried to yell as it moved its face closer to him.

Suddenly the creature jerked and yowled, dropping Bill’s face. Bill’s head bounced against the pavement and he groaned at the sharp pain in the back of his head, frowning when he saw someone stand over him.

“Get up, Bill!”

Bill stared up in shock at the person with that unmistakable shovel resting over their right shoulder.

“G-G-Georgie?”

His brother looked down at him in confusion, then sighed when Bill’s eyes traveled toward the still bleeding hole in his brother’s stomach.

Georgie actually looked concerned. “Did you forget I was already dead?”

Bill gaped at his brother before they both heard the creature yell Georgie’s name and both brothers turned to look as the freakish clown moved towards them. Bill didn’t even have time to blink before Georgie was running forward at the creature, meeting it head on and swinging his shovel up only to bring it down harshly on the creature’s side.

Bill watched them for only a second longer before pushing himself to his feet despite the throbbing in his head and ran towards the fight with Silver drawn.

Together with a shovel and a sickle they fought.

If Bill has ever thought Georgie was weak, he would never think that again as they moved together, one attacking while the other backed down only to lash forward when the creature least expected it. He couldn’t help the grim satisfaction when Georgie’s shovel hit the creature in the face and Bill lunged forward to slash at its stomach.

The clown yelled, black ooze dripping out of its mouth as it folded backwards into an inhuman looking backbend and crawled quickly towards an open manhole. They rushed toward it, but before either of them could reach it, the creature let out a horrifying laugh and slipped down into the depths of the sewers below.

Bill kicked at the open manhole and groaned before falling over on his butt. His entire body hurt, but his face stung from where he’d been slashed, and he glanced up at Georgie when his brother kneeled next to him.

They stared at each other for a long moment, then Bill frowned and raised an eyebrow. “So, you’ve been able to not die this entire time?”

Georgie looked a little surprised by the question but nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

“And...you didn’t care to tell me this?”

Georgie looked bewildered. “I thought it was obvious?”

“No, Georgie! It wasn’t!”

“But-I’m a walking corpse, Bill! I’m Hades right-hand!”

Bill waved him off. “Details!”

When Georgie huffed Bill couldn’t keep his annoyance and he smiled up at his brother. “So, you’re actually not awful?”

Bill laughed when Georgie rolled his eyes but held his hand out for Bill to take which he did and let his brother pull him up. He cringed a little, going to touch his head gingerly before sighing. “We need to have a team meeting, immediately.”

“I agree.”

Bill nodded. “Let’s find Richie and Eddie. Then we’ll call the meeting and I can get checked for a concussion.”

Bill turned to see Georgie staring at the manhole the creature had slipped down, a frown on his face. “What was that thing, Bill?”

“I don’t know.” He reached out and placed a hand on Georgie’s shoulder. “But we’re going to find out.”

 

* * *

 

Ben tapped his fingers restlessly against the Guild’s conference room table, his phone ready to call Bev when they needed to start the meeting. Since they had gotten her home, her refusing to go to the hospital when she had no wounds, she had locked herself immediately into the bedroom, barely even allowing Kay in to see her.

_“I’m sorry, Ben.” She had whispered through the door as he leaned his forehead against the dark wood. “I can’t right now. I’ll get over it, I will. I just can’t right now. I can’t trust anything right now.”_

_“I understand.” He whispered back; glad she was at least eating the meals Kay had been making. “Take all the time you need. Do you want me to stay at a hotel?”_

_He heard her choke down a sob and he felt his heart clench for his girl. He pressed a hand against the door, imagining she was leaning against the other side doing the same. “I don’t mind, Bev. I get it.”_

_He heard her start to cry, but between the sobs he heard her whisper ‘please’._

Ben had promptly gotten a room at the Maxwell; they welcomed him with open arms since he had recently redesigned their pool area. Living out of a suitcase wasn’t something new; he just had to imagine he was on a business trip and ordered two full body pillows to be brought up so he could feel like Bev and Kay were there with him.

Even though neither of his girls smelled like hotel laundry detergent.

When Richie and Eddie burst into the room, arguing about something, Ben sat up a little straighter offering a smile when Eddie rolled his eyes and turned to look at him.

“Oh! Hey, Ben. I didn’t think anyone was here yet.” Eddie seemed awkward and Ben glanced down at the table because he knew why. Everyone knew he hadn’t been sleeping at home, even Mike still slept at home, but he didn’t want his team feeling bad for him, so he looked back up with an even bigger smile.

“Hey, Eddie.” He gave a nod to Richie who waved back before throwing himself in a chair, arms folded, and Ben could tell Richie was in a bad mood. He raised a questioning eyebrow at Eddie, who only shook his head with an exasperated look and moved to sit down just a chair apart from Richie, quickly turning to his phone and typing something out.

Huh. Maybe Eddie wasn’t awkward because of him.

Since Richie didn’t seem to be in a talking mood and Eddie was engrossed in his phone, probably something to do with the repairs to his shop, Ben went quiet again and waited for the rest of the team to show.

Mike and Stan showed up next, Stan looking better than he had in weeks, but he noticed that Mike still kept his distance from his fiancé and Ben tried not to let that thought bother him. He was glad when Mike struck up a conversation with him, being left alone with his thoughts for too long lately, and he gladly sunk into the world of how to take care of tulip bulbs.

When Bill and Georgie walked in Ben made a grab for his phone, apologizing to Mike as he quickly pulled up Bev’s name. He waited for Bill and Georgie to sit down, greeting everyone in the room before tuning to Ben with a nod. He hesitated for only a second, wondering if she would feel more comfortable if Richie or Bill called her, before sliding his finger over her name and calling.

He pressed speaker, everyone quieting as they waited.

It rang.

And rang.

And rang.

And rang.

After the fifth ring Ben started to get a bit nervous, the rest of the team tensing where the metal holding the windows in place started to quiver slightly. When the sixth ring ended, Bill stood up and turned his communicator on, ordering agent Phillips to head to Ben and Bev’s apartment immediately.

The seventh ring.

“Shit!” Richie was up and almost out the door when they heard a click and Bev breathing heavily into the phone.

“Bev?!” Ben called, pulling to phone to him as the entire foundation of the skyscraper creaked ominously. Ben knew he had to keep himself in check, but he had no idea how when Bev might be in trouble. “Babe, are you okay?”

“Oh god!” Bev groaned. “Yeah! Sorry!”

There was a loud clattering sound, then the sound of bare feet slapping on tile before they heard from her again.

“I’m so sorry! I um….I...I was calming myself down?” The entire room knew what that meant, and Ben sat back with a sigh as Richie groaned loudly, throwing himself back into his chair.

“Beverly Marsh, getting high right now is not professional! Two million trillion points from Gryffindor.”

“Shut up, Mom.”

Even though he was trying to be irritated, Ben could see the smile creep across Richie’s face at her reply and Bill sat back down before calling Agent Phillips off her task.

“Now that we have everyone here.” Bill shot a glare at the phone and even though Bev couldn’t see it she still gave a quiet apology. “We need to talk about what we are dealing with here.”

Any and all lightheartedness that had been in the room was stomped out immediately, Bev going silent while Stan and Eddie sank further into their seats. Even Bill seemed uneasy about bringing it up, the gash across his face just starting to scab over as he nodded over towards Ben.

Ben pulled out his tablet, sliding his fingers across to open it and he thanked Georgie for lowering the lights as he pushed it out into the middle of the table. His tablet glowed in the dark for a few seconds before a green holographic blueprint of the city and its sewer system rose up from it to span the entire conference table.

“Bev?” He asked, standing up with a sigh as he reached for his phone. “I’d like to pull you up on video so you can see. If not, I can always send you the diagram and you can look at it from your laptop.”

“That’s fine, Ben.”

He never would have thought being called by his name would hurt instead of babe or honey, but he pushed past that and pressed a button before placing his phone into the chair Bev usually occupied. Soon Bev’s image was there, if not for the green glow to her entire body, it would have looked like she was actually with them. Ben smiled to see that she was dressed in regular clothes and not her pajamas, Kay must have been able to get her out of them.

She must have made her shower too.

God, Kay was amazing.

“Alright. Thanks to Mike’s blueprints of the city,” Ben leaned forward to touch his hologram, nothing really there but the picture responded several little blue dots appearing all over the city as well as four little red dots. “We can see where all the children have been taken, the blue dots, as well as where members of our team have been attacked, the red ones.”

“Bev, Bill and Georgie.” He looked over at the three of them. “You three are the only ones who have actually seen this thing without disguise...or what we are assuming is it’s real form?”

Bev and Bill seemed to make eye contact before Bill nodded.

“A clown.” He started softly, then cleared his throat and their leader was back. “It was in the shape of a clown when it…. when it tried to kill Georgie in front of me.”

Georgie reached over to lay a hand on over his brother’s, Bill turning his so he could hold on tight to Georgie’s.

Bev nodded then too. “That’s what it was after I pushed back against it. This gross, hideous thing that just laughed when I started fighting back.”

Ben noticed her starting to look sick, so he moved on quickly, looking over at Stan who looked so uncomfortable Ben wished he didn’t have to make his friend talk about it. “The only form it took was Mike, Stan?”

For a moment Ben panicked when it looked like Stan was about to cry, but he swallowed quickly and soon the stone face of Ghost was back in place. Stan gave a solemn nod, glancing over at Mike quickly before looking up at the small red dot that was placed in the sewers.

The place he was attacked

“Yeah, it only took that one form,” Stan shifted a little, like he was sitting on something uncomfortable. “But it showed me something else, it somehow was able to make me think I saw...my own body on the ground next to it.

Stan swallowed. “My body was in pieces and stuck in the wall like I hadn’t phased correctly.”

Ben watched as Mike bit his bottom lip roughly, knowing he was trying to stop himself from going over to Stan and hugging him. Bev spoke up next and Ben hated how quiet her voice was.

“It showed me, this baby, but it wasn’t really a baby. I mean,” Her brow creased as she tried to explain. “It looked like a baby at first, but then it changed into something horrible and it got stuck to my skin...then the thing changed from Ben to my dad.”

Everyone on the team knew about Alan Marsh and what he’d done to his daughter.

Ben turned to Bill, trying not to make it seem like he was trying to let Bev off the hook of talking. “And for you...it was killing Georgie.”

Bill’s face went murderous, his grip must have tightened a bit too much before Georgie frowned and wiggled their connected hands a little until Bill loosened his grip. “That wasn’t an illusion though, that bastard literally tore through Georgie's stomach in front of me and laughed.”

“He got better though.” Richie supplied in a cockney accent, though the joke was not well received as Bill glared at him.

Ben hummed quietly in thought and then all eyes slid over to Eddie, who frowned a little with his shoulders hunched.

“Um, it took the form of my dad.” Eddie hunched his shoulders even more, looking like he was trying to become the smallest thing in the room. “And it knew...everything.”

Everyone was silent.

“Everything?” Bill questioned. “As in…”

“Everything.” Eddie confirmed, rubbing a hand over his face. “Knew I was part alien, knew how my dad used to smell and even knew the name of his people. Which only two people knew, right up until my mom died, now only one.”

“So,” Bill started slowly. “It came as your dad, that caused your panic attack?”

Eddie’s face went red and the loud screeching of Richie scooting his chair over towards the smaller man made everyone in the room cringe, even Eddie. Richie leaned over, bumping his shoulder against Eddie’s gently, whispering something that no one could hear before Eddie nodded and then turned to Bill.

“No, it wasn’t my dad. It was what he said.” Ben noticed the way Eddie’s hands shook slightly. “He told me that I was going to die. That I would die because I’m only half human and my body can’t take the power it has.”

Ben noticed Richie lean close again and stay that way, hopeful that at least maybe they were figuring things out even with all this happening.

“So,” Bev started softly. “It likes to scare us. Scare us with really personal fears.”

Ben and Bev made eye contact for only a second, her lips mouthing the words ‘talk later’ before she was looking back at the group around the table.

“Are we saying this thing is a mind reader?” Stan frowned as he fiddled with the hem of his jacket. “Because, I hate to say this, you are all my friends, but I have never told anyone my fear of losing control over my phasing.”

Bev pursed her lips. “Neither did I.”

Eddie shook his head. “Nope.”

When the group turned to look at Bill, he gave a tired sigh with a small shrug. “It would be easy to find the papers about Georgie’s death in our hometown records, even easier to find the ones about him miraculously coming back without aging a day. He had a cult following for a really long time.”

Ben licked his lips. “Easier to find, but still your worst fear.”

Bill looked over at his hand holding Georgie’s and nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay,” Richie started, sitting up but moving his hand so it gripped Eddie’s wrist. “So, it wants to scare us, but why? I mean, Bill said this thing can shapeshift into having talons and if it could take on Bev it has to be crazy strong. Why not just come at us? Why all the weird creepy psychological shit?”

“And why all the missing children?” Ben felt the need to remind everyone, having the small blue dots all over the hologram city flash in sync. “Is this the same thing that’s been leaving the ball-“

“It is.” Bev said matter-of-factly. “It had a red balloon for me.”

Mike frowned looking at Stan, then Bill and Eddie. “Did you guys notice any balloons?”

All three men shook their heads.

“I think Bev is right.” Georgie spoke up, surprising everyone. “This thing reeked of death, almost more than the Styx, which is saying something.”

“Wait, are you saying you smell death?” Richie asked, giving a disbelieving laugh when Georgie nodded. “You amazing creepy fucker.”

“Hey!”

“It’s okay, Bill.” Georgie soothed, nodding to Richie’s comment with a grimace. “Yes, I can...smell death.”

Mike frowned. “Does that mean the kids…?”

Georgie swallowed loudly. “I hope not, but this thing has been killing something and I want to try and find out.”

Everyone turned to look at Bill and he sighed with a small nod. “If it will help us get answers, Georgie, you can do your summoning or whatever it’s called.”

Bill ignored his brother's offended huff as he stood up, placing his hands on the table and looking at each member of his team. Ben could tell by the way Bill’s jaw set that this was not about to be a suggestion from their friend, but a command from their leader and Ben stood a little taller in response.

“Until we know more about this thing and how to stop it, I don’t want any of us alone for long periods of time. Work is one thing, but if people are leaving, you leave too. Those of you who live alone I want you pairing up with someone.” Bill gestures towards Richie and Eddie. “Since you two are really the only one living alone I want you two together, I don’t care who’s place and I don’t care about awkward times. Right now, we are in survival mode and we’ll do what we have to, understand?”

Both men nodded quickly, it being hard to argue when Bill used that tone.

“Ben, I want you back at your apartment.”

Ben’s eyes widened before he glanced over at Bev’s projection and then back to Bill.

“Uh, no. That’s okay.”

“I’m not asking, Ben.”

Ben licked his lips and he could tell how Bev was starting to panic a little by the way she brought her hand to her mouth and started to chew on her thumbnail. He couldn’t go back, not when she needed this time to work everything out. Ben raised his hands, trying to show Bill he wasn’t trying to disobey orders just because and tried to reason.

“Bill, the hotel I’m at is super busy all the time. I have people literally in the rooms on either side of mine, there isn’t a minute that I’m actually alone.”

“Ben…”

“Bev, it’s okay.” Ben reassured her without taking his eyes from Bill’s. “I will be fine where I am, Bill. I promise.”

Bill didn’t seem convinced and if Ben threw a little bit of a pleading look towards their commander then he wasn’t ashamed of it when Bill’s shoulders dropped slightly, and he sighed.

“Ben, I swear to god.” He whispered before pursing his lips tightly in dissatisfaction. “I’m having someone check on you every three hours after work, you hear me?”

Ben nodded. “That’s fine.”

Anything as long as it got Bev the time she needed, but when he looked over at her seat it was empty. She must have hung up the call while he was bargaining with Bill and Ben ignored the way his stomach hurt at that.

Bill called the meeting, and everyone went on their way.

 

* * *

 

“Welcome to Casa de Tozier.”

Richie opened his arms wide as he spun around in his entry way, grinning as Eddie pushed his way through the front door and dropped his bags to the floor.

“I’ve been here before, Richie.” Eddie said with an eye roll, glancing around and raising an eyebrow when he looked in the living room. “Did you get an even bigger TV?”

“Yeah!” Richie yelled excitedly, running over to the large thin black screen and laid his hands lovingly on the side. “She’s seventy inches, Eds. You know what that means?”

“That you paid way too much so you can see Jessica Chastain pores?”

Richie snickered, loving his new roomie. “God, her pores are the best. So sexy.”

“You are so fucking weird.”

“Oh, don’t be like that, baby. Your pores are so much sexier!” Richie yelled at him as he watched Eddie walk into the kitchen and help himself to one of the IPAs Richie kept in the fridge. Richie almost swooned when Eddie just popped the top off the beer like it was nothing and took a swig.

God, Eddie was beautiful.

Eddie took another sip before looking over at him. “What?”

Richie shook his head and moved away from living room to join Eddie in the kitchen, taking one of his own beers and holding it out to Eddie. Eddie smiled, opening his beer for him with a satisfying pop and Richie took a sip. They stood quietly there for a bit, Eddie leaning his hip against the counter while Richie stood against the fridge. It was nice, not weird, but Eddie had been weird since they packed up his bags earlier that morning and Richie reached his foot out to poke Eddie in the shin.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

Eddie looked at him and Richie was surprised when he saw guilt.

“I don’t think you want ’em.”

_Oh._

Richie frowned a little but tried to keep himself calm. Nothing made Eddie jumpier than when people got angry, so Richie took a long sip of his beer, a gulp really, before asking.

“Is this about that fucker knowing about your dad again?”

When Eddie didn’t answer Richie sighed. “Eddie, come on.”

“That thing knew things that no one else did, Richie!” Eddie suddenly exploded, pushing off the counter to walk into the dining room area of the apartment, stopping near the sliding glass door that lead to the balcony. It broke Richie's heart how badly Eddie tried to work this, how badly he wanted to believe he could find anything about his dad. “It knew what he smelled like, how he sounded, I mean every detail was just-“

“Eds, the thing was able to mimic Ben and Bev’s dad too. Even Stan said the voice it did for Mike was perfect.” That frown was back on Eddie’s face, the one that always told people Edward Kaspbrak wasn’t about to back down and normally Richie loved it, but not right now. He placed his beer down on the counter loudly and walked over to the other, making sure Eddie looked him in the eye. “Do not go looking for it, Eds. Do you hear me?”

“What if it knows something about my dad?” Eddie asked and Richie threw his hands up in the air in frustration. They had had this same exact conversation right before the team meeting, Eddie wanting to find out more and Richie just wanting to keep his friend safe.

“It’s a goddamn evil piece of shit that gets its jollies by scaring the hell out of people! He’s probably reading your mind!” Richie cried, his glasses slipping a little down his nose, but he didn’t dare fix them as he glared at Eddie. “Oh, and probably kills children for fun if Grim Reaper Jr.’s schnoz is working correctly.”

Eddie’s face was getting red and Richie could tell he was about to let Richie have it, but that wasn’t at all what Richie had wanted move in day to be like so he let out a loud sigh before moving over to wrap Eddie up in his arms. He felt Eddie go tense, the smaller man feeling like he was ready to snap Richie in half before Richie took the risk and pressed a soft kiss to Eddie’s temple.

“I know you want to find out about your dad, Eds.” He started softly, as if he was trying to talk a hissing cat down. He felt Eddie shift, still tense, but he hadn’t tried to break his hold, so Richie was counting it as a win. “And after this, Eddie, I swear I will fucking break into NASA and steal us a rocket so we can find out more about him, but I swear to God if you got hurt because you were being stupid?”

He felt Eddie jerk at that, a silent protest at being called stupid and Richie almost smiled.

“If you got hurt or worse, I don’t think I could handle it.”

They stood like that quietly for a few minutes, Richie letting out a slow breath when he felt Eddie’s hands come up and rest on his lower back. The sounds of Manhattan getting ready for the evening filtered through the closed windows of his apartment and he suddenly wondered if this is how it would feel to have Eddie again.

Ya know. Minus the whole psycho killer clown thing and Eddie’s daddy issues.

Coming home and being able to hold him like this. Freely.

Eddie moves first, stepping back a little bit so he could look up at Richie, reaching up and pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. Now that Eddie’s face was crystal clear again, he looked like he was in thought and Richie waited.

It didn’t take Eddie too long.

“That wasn’t how I pronounced it in my head though…”

Richie frowned. “What?”

Eddie bit his bottom lip before looking up at Richie seriously.

“You said it was probably a mind reader, which would make sense for how it knows all our fears but…” Eddie glanced down and took a deep breath, like he was trying to gather strength for what he was about to say and when he met Richie’s eye again he looked so vulnerable. “The way it said my dad’s species name...wasn’t at all how I say it in my head.”

Richie frowned. “Wait…”

“If it was just reading my mind, why would it say it differently? Wouldn’t that make it seem weirder to me?”

Richie opened his mouth, then closed it having no idea what to say to that. Finally, his brain seemed to figure out how to work again and he reached out to take Eddie’s hand. “Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

Eddie shrugged, but didn’t pull his hand away. “You immediately told me I was being crazy before I could say it and that made me mad? So, we fought?”

“Ahhh.” Richie nodded sagely. “Yeah, sounds like us.”

“So, you get it?”

Richie sighed and tugged on Eddie’s hand a little, for no real reason other than to just keep touching him.

“Look, I’ll admit that’s...at least more than I thought, _but_ I still don’t think you should go freaky clown hunting all by yourself on a something that might not even be something.” When Eddie’s face started to fall, Richie quickly moved to fix what he’d said. “This has to be a team effort, no lone gunman shit, okay? You want answers, we’ll help you find them if this fucker has them.”

Eddie’s smile was everything Richie ever wanted. “Yeah? You think they’d help?”

“Jesus, Eds. What do you take us for?” Richie griped, only slightly offended. “Of course, we would. We love you.”

It was a little too close to what he wasn’t supposed to say and they both watched each other quietly because they both knew it, but instead of pulling away, Eddie just smiled.

“I love you guys too, Richie.” He said softly, turning his hand so he could hold Richie’s back. “I love you guys very much.”

The moment was sweet and beautiful.

So, Richie had to ruin it before he did anything stupid,

“Alright, well, I have to take a massive BM. You know where the guest bedroom is?”

“Jesus Christ, Richie.”

 

* * *

 

Mike shifted on the couch, the faux leather squeaking as he moved, and he pulled the thick quilt up further around his shoulders. The pillow was his, the quilt made by his mother so obviously it was soft, and he had napped on this couch more times than he could count. So, he didn’t understand why now, for the past six days Stan had been back home, he suddenly couldn’t sleep here.

Well, he knew why.

He wasn’t in his bed with Stan.

He shifted to lay on his back, listening to the soft pattern of rain against the roof as he tried to get at least some rest. They had a couple coming out to look at the grounds for their wedding in June, so Mike needed to have everything ready.

“Come on, Mike.” He muttered, foot starting to jiggle. “Let’s just go to sleep.”

Five minutes later and he still wasn’t the least bit tired, sitting up with an irritated groan as he rubbed his hand over his face. Maybe if he made some sleepy peach tea and took some of Stan’s melatonin, that always seemed to help when he was restless. He was about to push the covers off his legs when he heard the sound of the floorboards creak in the hallway, freezing as he listened.

When he heard it again, footsteps, he stood up quickly reaching out to run his hands over the small tomato plant they kept near the coffee table and let its vines wrap around his wrist as he turned towards the hallway. There was another creak and Mike grit his teeth, no way was he letting this thing at Stan twice.

He ran to the hall, the tomato’s vines grow wide and thick, wrapping around his arm like green armor then yelled when and charged when he saw a tall figure in the shadows. He swung his covered fist out, then felt the familiar nauseating feeling of something passing through his body as he stumbled right through the figure.

“S-Stan?”

“What the fuck, Mike?!”

He heard Stan fumble for the light switch, light flossing the hallway when he found it and there was the love of his life in all his glory. His curly hair messy and sticking out at incredible angles, the glasses he only wore at home perched on the top of his nose and his expression was rage filled.

Didn’t help that Stan was also wearing the flannel pajama set Mike had bought him for the seventh day of Hanukkah. He always looked amazing in blue.

“Sorry. I thought…” Mike cringed when he saw Stan purse his lips and tilt his head, much like how Mike’s mother used to do when she was waiting for an explanation. Both were equally frightening. “Sorry, I thought that thing was after you again.”

Stan blinked, the anger melting quickly and replaced with an uncomfortable look. “Oh.”

The silence was awkward, and Mike let their tomato plant shrink back down until it was just a small little vine with one little round green tomato hanging on it. It had been like this since Stan had come home, his fiancé pushing himself to do activities with Mike even though he was obviously uncomfortable with it. He understood why Stan was doing it, but sometimes it just hurt to know someone you loved was forcing themselves to be with you.

“What is the name of my favorite calculator?”

“Huh?” Mike frowned in confusion, then looked up at Stan’s hesitant face and understood. “Oh. Her name is Lady Jaye.”

Stan’s shoulders relaxed and a small smile came to his lips, then he seemed to be waiting for something causing Mike to sigh.

“Umm...what’s my favorite snack?”

Stan frowned, obviously not impressed with the difficulty of that question, but answered anyway with a small sigh.

“Black olives.”

Mike gave him a lone finger gun.

They were quiet again and Mike stood up slowly, cradling the small tomato plant in his palm as he moved his head towards the living room. “Umm, I’ll get back to my couch. We got a busy day tomorrow so we should try and get some sleep.”

He started to move, surprised when he felt a hand on his arm pull him back. He turned to look at Stan, the other’s face looking hesitant but determined.

“Stan?”

“Come sleep with me.”

“What?” He asked breathlessly, scared if he even moved this dream might break.

“Yeah.” Stan nodded, then gulped and looked up at him. “I want you to come sleep with me, in our bed.”

Mike frowned. “I don’t want you to force yourself, Stan.”

Mike stumbled back a bit when he was met with a glare he hadn’t been on the receiving end of in a very long time. He took a sharp breath in through his nose when Stan stepped forward into his space, wrapping an arm around Mike’s neck and giving him such an intense kiss that Mike’s head swam. The poor tomato plant fell to the floor as his hands found Stan’s waist, something he didn’t know if he would ever be able to do again and moaned when Stan bit his bottom lip.

“I’m not letting this thing control my life anymore.” Stan growled against Mike’s lips, his nails scratching the back of Mike’s scalp which made him shudder. “If I want to sleep in bed with my fiancé, I’m going to.”

“Oh.” Mike replies dumbly, but he really couldn’t be blamed because Stan was pressing himself awfully close and he smelled so good.

Like sleep and that night cream he used.

“So, go get your pillow and come to bed.”

Mike could only nod quickly, almost running to the living room to get his pillow as soon as Stan let him go and he couldn’t stop the large smile from spreading on his face as he raced back towards their room.

He had expected Stan to be back under the covers when he came in, asleep already, but his fiancé was sitting at the foot of their bed waiting. When Stan saw him, he gave the spot next to him a pat and Mike obeyed, throwing his pillow where it belonged before sitting down next to the other.

Stan was quiet and seemed almost nervous before reaching out to touch Mike’s jaw, cupping it gently while his other hand moved to trace Mike’s lips. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too, babe.” Mike whispered against the pad of Stan’s thumb, giving it a soft kiss. “So much.”

He closed his eyes when Stan leaned forward to press his lips against Mike’s again, the kiss soft at first before Mike licked at the seam of Stan’s lips and something seemed to snap in the other. He started scrambling to undo the buttons of his pajama shirt, almost ripping them off with how much he was tugging, and Mike moved to help.

He made Stan slow down, smiling a little when the other huffed at him as he opened Stan’s shirt, letting his hands glide over Stan’s shoulders to push the shirt off them.

“You alright?” He asked softly and he laughed when Stan glared a little. “I’m serious. Don’t think you have to jump right into bed with both boots on right away. I’m just excited to sleep next to you.”

“First off,” Stan grumbled, reaching down to pull the hem of Mike’s shirt up, Mike helping as he pulled it off and bit his lip when he felt Stan’s cool hands on his stomach. “Your sayings are weird, but you already knew that. Second, it has been three weeks since I last touched you.”

“You don’t have to remind me.”

Stan shushed him by pressing another kiss to his lips, a thrill going through Mike when he felt Stan flick his tongue out just slightly before pulling away. “And I already said I’m done letting this thing ruin my life, so if I want my fiancé to fuck me into the bed, I’m going to make sure it happens. Got that?”

Mike’s eyebrows rose. “Wow, Bossy Stan is back.”

“Do you have a problem with that?”

“Never.”

“Good.” Stan stated, before laughing when Mike grabbed him around the waist and manhandled him down into the bed. They kicked their pants off in record time, Mike groaning and pressing his face into Stan’s neck when he felt those slender fingers slide down to cup him through his boxers.

“Jesus!”

“Wrong Jewish guy, babe.”

“You little…”

Stan yelped when Mike bit his neck and while he was distracted, slid his hand under one of those long legs to hike it up and around his waist. Both of them hissed when Mike thrust down, Stan’s hands moving to grab Mike’s face so he could kiss him. They continued to kiss and rut against one another, moaning quietly into each other’s mouths as Mike’s hips picked up speed.

_Fuck!_ He was going to come in his underwear like he was sixteen again if they kept this up, but when he heard Stan let out that hoarse cry that signaled he was close, Mike couldn’t give a fuck.

He was just about ready to go for home when Stan pulled his mouth away from Mike’s and shook his head, Mike immediately stopping.

“What? What’s wrong? You okay?”

“Oh god. Love, shut up.” Stan grumped, but there was a smile on his face, and he made a grabbing motion towards the nightstand. “You better get the supplies because I said I wanted to get fucked, but if we keep this up it isn’t going to happen.”

Mike couldn’t help it; his chest was ready to burst with love for the man under him and he leaned down to capture Stan’s mouth in a passionate kiss as he fumbled for the stuff in the nightstand. With supplies out, he pulled Stan’s boxer briefs off and let Stan do the same for him before uncapping the light blue bottle of lube.

Three weeks hadn’t been the longest they had ever gone, but Mike was still gentle as he slid a finger in, kissing the inside of Stan’s thigh gently when he hissed quietly at the burn. Mike took his time, waiting until Stan got used to every new finger before adding another and when Stan reached down to tell him he was ready, Mike just hummed.

Then swallowed Stan’s length down while he crooked the three fingers inside.

Stan reacted like his body had touched a live wire, his hands gripping Mike’s head tightly as his back arched beautifully. The way his mouth hung open and he started to pant was the best thing Mike had ever seen, pushing down his gag reflex to take Stan deep so he could hear more of those amazing sounds.

He went until he heard Stan beg, plead with him that this wasn’t how he wanted it to end and Mike pulled back slowly, giving the head of Stan’s cock a messy kiss before sitting up. He ripped the foil open with his teeth, grinning when he heard Stan groan at that and rolled condom down onto himself, adjusting it a bit before crawling over Stan.

“You ready?” He whispered, pressing a soft kiss to Stan’s bitten red lips and humming when he felt Stan throw a leg over his hip.

“Very.”

He pushed in slowly, both of them gasping at the feel and Mike pressed his forehead against Stan’s as he waited for the other to adjust. When he felt the light tap against his shoulder, Mike started to move, the bed groaning almost as loud as they were when he started to pick up speed.

“Oh! Fuck!” Stan cried, arms going around Mike’s neck and his nails taking down his back which made Mike gasp, almost losing it. After a few more thrusts he heard that hoarse cry again and he reached down to quickly give Stan’s cock a few tight pumps.

It was his favorite thing in the world to watch how Stan’s body went tight and still when he came, his mouth open on a silent moan before his body started to jerk with the aftershocks as Mike continued to move.

He gasped when Stan looked up at him, his green eyes heavy with satisfaction, and in his wrecked voice asked Mike to come. As if on command, Mike gave a few more thrusts before letting out a low deep groan and came, collapsing on top of his fiancé and letting Stan press soft kisses to the top of his head.

They laid like that for a while, both too comfortable to move until they felt the sticky remains of Stan’s release start to cool between them. Mike sighed as he pushed himself up, slowly pulling out and grinning when Stan sighed softly.

“You’re beautiful.” He whispered, looking down at the man he would die for. “I love you, so much.”

Stan gave him a tired smile, letting one bare foot run along Mike’s side gently. “And I love you. Can you get the wet wipes? I feel gross.”

They cleaned up quickly, tossing their trash in the small bin by the nightstand and Mike gave Stan’s head a kiss. “I’ll be right back. Going to get some water, you want anything?”

Stan was already curled up in the thick duvet and all Mike heard was a soft huff that sounded like it could have been a no, so he just smiled as he pulled on his boxers. He walked down the hall towards the kitchen, feeling a hundred times lighter now that things seemed to be worked out with him and Stan.

He hummed happily as he reached for a glass, turning the tap on cold before filling the glass and taking a nice refreshing gulp. He heard the floorboard creak again and grinned, finishing the rest of his water before setting the glass down in the sink.

“Thought you said you didn’t want anything.”

He turned around, ready to tease Stan some more but stopped dead when it wasn't Stan standing in the entrance way to the hallway. Mike felt his heart skip when he saw himself, mouth and chest covered in blood as the large carcass of a steer laid at his double’s feet, blood quickly leaking all over the floor boards as it bled out from its massacred side.

Mike felt like he was going to be sick when his clone grinned, teeth red with blood, and leaned down to rip out the heart of the steer, a sickening wet sound with a horrific pop, before looking back up at Mike.

“I’m still so hungry.” It whispered.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- Eddie has a very bad panic attack
> 
> \- Georgie gets run through with talons
> 
> \- Mike and Stan have sex


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thank you to [Tinyarmedtrex](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinyarmedtrex) for betaing for me!
> 
> Warnings for this chapter at the bottom!

 

 

 

 

Growing up on a farm meant you had to do a lot of hard things.

Not just physically, but emotionally as well.

Mike remembered the first time he had to kill a chicken, the butcher cleaver shining brightly as his father handed it to him. Mike had cried while he did it and had nightmares of a week after, but his father told him that if he wanted a working farm with animals’ sacrifices had to be made.

It was the circle of life. They grew the plants that would feed the animals, the animals would then be eaten to give people the strength they needed to grow more plants.

Mike suffered through the killing, knowing that he was doing it as quick as he could so they wouldn’t suffer, but afterward he wouldn’t be able to eat for days.

Then his powers kicked in.

It was fun for a while, listening to the plants and animals, being able to get in their heads and see what the liked and disliked.

It was fun until he noticed that if he spent too long in an animal’s head, he started to adopt their traits for a little bit afterward. He began using his powers sparingly after that, then one  night wolves came to the farm.

He remembered his father grabbing his gun and telling Mike to grab the other, his voice was calm but Mike could hear the edge of panic. They made their way to the barn where the cows were, and his father fired off a shot when they heard one of their dairy cows cry out.

When they got inside the saw that one wolf had jumped into Mary-Lou’s pen with her and started to attack, his dad rushing over, and Mike knew what he had to do.

As best he could, he instructed the wolves to leave, but that night he learned he should never try to take on four wolves at once.

He didn’t really remember what happened after that, but he remembered waking up in the hospital with his father sitting beside his bed. There were tears in his father’s eyes as he held on tight to Mike’s hand and continued to whisper. “I won’t let them take you away, Mike. I won’t let them take my boy.”

Mike had attacked his mother and killed Mary-Lou, eating her just like the wolves had tried.

Mike stared at his mirrored image, the clone covered in blood like he assumed he had been that night and Mike slowly inched his way towards where Stan kept his Japanese cooking knives.

“Please…” The bloodied man growled. “I need more to eat. I’m so hungry.”

Mike shook his head. “No. I’m not.”

His clone tilted its head, an almost irritated look coming to its face before its body started to change. Mike watched in horror as the creature grew shorter and slimmer, an old patterned dress appearing that Mike knew instantly.

Jessica Hanlon stood before him, bloody and beaten with a sorrowful look on her face and Mike felt sick.

“Why, Mike?” It whispered in her voice, tears bubbling up over her lower lids and siding down her bruised cheeks. “Why would you do this to me?”

Mike took in a sharp breath, knowing that wasn’t his mom but the creature copied her so well, even the way she held herself when she was scared. He took a step closer to the knives, moving so his body stood in front of them with his back to them. He kept his eyes on the creature and reached back, hand curling around the handle of the large carving knife and quietly sliding it from its sheath.

“Don’t you have anything to say to me, Mike?” The creature made his mother’s voice rise slightly, tears now falling heavily as she reached a handout to him. “You’ve hurt me so much.”

“You’re not real.” He started firmly, watching with satisfaction as the creature froze like it was some kind of animatronic that had lost power, then a look of rage across its face.

“How dare you say that to your mother…” It hissed, its voice coming out weird and distorted. Like his mother’s voice was mixed with someone else’s.

“You’re not real.” Mike repeated as he pulled the knife in front of him and slowly started to advance. “I know that because my mother forgave me for what happened that night. Using her like that doesn’t make me scared. It just makes me mad.”

He moved forward when the creature did, his features now a disturbing mix of his mother’s and a freakish clown. He turned the knife in his hand so that he had it in an icepick grip and slashed at the monster when it came at him, the blade catching the creature on its shoulder and it howled. Mike dodged as it swiped at him, the hand now far larger and beast like than before and he slashed at its arm before the monster could pull it away, cutting it deep.

It cried out again and started to move away, but Mike wasn’t going to let that happen as he moved after it, ready to plunge the knife anywhere lethal.

Suddenly he was standing over Stan.

Scared Stan who was cowering.

“Mike…” It whispered. “Please…you’re scaring me again.”

Mike stood frozen as he stared at the shaking form of his fiancé, in his mind he knew that wasn’t Stan, but the fear Stan had for him earlier was still so fresh. The hand holding the knife started to tremble and the creature looked up at him with Stan’s bright wet green eyes.

“I love you.” It whispered brokenly before its head was brutally bashed in with a baseball bat.

Mike jerked back and looked over, his heart soaring when he saw the real Stan wielding his college metal baseball bat.

“Stop using my face, you fucker!” Stan yelled at It, the creature holding it dented in head tried to lunge for Stan but moved away when he started to swing the bat again.

Mike didn’t waste time, moving while it was distracted with Stan to get behind the creature. He waited until it jumped back from a rather powerful swing and with all the force he could, ran forward to plunge the knife deep into its back.

The sound it let out was horrifying.

The way it jerked and writhed to get the knife out was unnatural, Stan’s face barely recognizable as it shifted between Mike’s mother, him and the horrible clown. It hissed loudly when it couldn’t pull the knife free and instead ran towards their back-screen door, clawing at its back as it continued to try and pull the knife out.

The creature didn’t even bother to open the door, just ran straight through the glass and out into their backyard. Mike moved quickly, Stan right next to him as they ran outside after the thing, it’s shrieks and cries starting to become distant as it ran into the woods.

“Mike.” Stan ordered and Mike nodded.

“On it.”

Mike quickly squatted to the ground, pressing his hand into the long cool grass, letting the blades tickle his palm and fingers as he listened to what the forest had to say. They gave him a clear path of where the creature was, the grass crying out to let him know where it had stepped but it was moving quickly, especially for how badly him and Stan had injured it.

He turned to look at Stan. “Should we go after it?”

He watched as Stan pursed his lips in thought, looking up at the clouds as they started to cover the moon and he shook his head. “No. Last time we did that alone it didn’t go well for us.”

Mike tried not to flinch.

“Besides,” Stan swung his bat up so it could rest against his shoulder as he peered out at the dark woods, the trees looking so ominous swaying in the wind without the sun. “It’s going to rain and going into the woods unprepared with rain is never a good idea.”

Mike smiled as he stood up. “There’s my Eagle Scout.”

Stan glanced at him with the smallest of smiles before sighing and looking back over towards their ruined back door.

“You mind, baby? At least until I can call the window guys in the morning.”

“No at all.”

“Good.” Stan said with a nod, taking one last long look at the woods before starting to make his way back towards the house. “I’ll call Bill and tell him what happened, he’ll probably want to have another team meeting about it.”

Before Stan could get too far, Mike reached out to grab hold on Stan’s wrist, smiling when Stan looked a little surprised as Mike pulled him back toward him.

“You were amazing in there.” He whispered, placing the softest kiss to Stan’s sharp cheek bone. “I can’t believe you didn’t want to go pro.”

“Flatter.” Stan muttered, trying not to smile. “You already have a ring on it.”

“Cause I’m a very smart man.”

Stan chuckled and shook his head, placing a kiss on Mike’s lips.

That night, after Mike had finished instructing the heavy wooden vines of his rose bushes to make a sturdy barrier in front of their broken door, Stan called Bill and told him what had happened. Their leader insisted that they needed to come and stay in the city until this thing was dealt with, but Stan just shook his head easily.

“The city doesn’t have many plants or animals. We are far safer here in the country than there.”

Mike felt a burst of pride that his fiancé trusted him and his powers that much, making sure to let the bushes around the house grow larger so it would deter any kind of intruder. They got back into bed, Stan leaning over to turn off the lamp on his nightstand and curled up with each other as the sound of thunder boomed in the distance.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“So, Mike was able to track the thing?” Eddie asked, glancing down at the five different suits that lay on Bev’s bed. They all looked the same, except one was obviously black while one looked.... navy? At least he knew that one of them was gray, which looked nice.

“That’s what Stan said this morning.” Bev replied, then hummed as she glanced through the men’s shoes, she had Kay being from her studio. “Bill, Georgie and them are going to check it out this afternoon.”

Eddie frowned, touching the matte grey tie that went with one of the suits. “Will that be enough?”

He heard Bev sigh, glancing over to see her resting her hand against her forehead, what she always did when she was stressed.

“I don’t know, Eddie.”

They were both quiet, both remembering their time up against the creature, then Bev took in a deep breath through her nose and clapped her hands together loudly. “Enough! They’ll call if we’re needed. We need to find you a tux for the gala!”

Eddie nodded and turned back to the suits, Bev coming up behind him with two pairs of brilliantly polished shoes. She had been more than willing to loan him something to wear for the gala, promising him that she would make him look perfect.

“Did you pick which one you like?”

“Umm…” Eddie bit his lip as he looked at the options again. “I’m not exactly sure. I haven’t worn a suit since about five Easters ago before my mom died. I’m out of the suit loop.”

“Eddie!” Bev whined. “They aren’t suits; they are tuxedos. Come on, what kind of gay man are you?”

“The kind that focuses on my hair and really tight jeans.” Eddie replied with a smirk, laughing when Bev wolf whistled at him. “Okay, but I think I like this gray one? It’s different.”

Bev snorted and stood up, reaching down to pick up the gray tuxedo and handing it to him before she gestured to the bathroom. “It’s really not, but if you mean from the standard black tux then I guess you’re right.”

He moved towards the bathroom, making sure to lay the suit down careful since it probably cost more than his entire shop, and closed the door behind him. He could hear Bev humming from the other side of the door and chanced a look at himself in the mirror.

He hadn’t been sleeping all that well since the attack in his garage. Every sound in Richie’s apartment made him think the monster was lurking right outside the guest bedroom door. It didn't help that Richie worked nights, so Eddie would sit up and listen to the man to come home at four in the morning just so he didn’t have to sleep alone in a strange place.

Though it really wasn’t strange. He had just never slept in the guest room before.

Eddie sighed and looked over at the beautiful tuxedo, reaching down to grab the hem of his t-shirt and pull it up over his head.

When he tucked the crisp white shirt into his pants, he blushed at how well everything seemed to fit. Running a little bit snug, but nothing obscene in anyway.

He wondered if Bev used the same measurements, he’d given her for his uniform or if she had just eyeballed it.

Either way she had a gift.

Eddie frowned at the slim black tie, not exactly sure the next way to tie it, so he tried his best and cringed when he looked in the mirror. Whatever, Bev could fix it for him and Richie could tie it for him later. He slipped the waist coat on, buttoning the three small pearled buttons before picking the jacket up carefully and making his way out.

“Oh! Eddie!” Bev gasped, shooting up from the bed and running over to look over her handiwork, nodding to herself. “This is good. This is very good. Good job, Beverly.”

Eddie laughed and looked down at himself. “Yeah? It looks good?”

“Um yeah.” Bev clicked her tongue, tone as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “How were you thinking of wearing your hair?”

Eddie’s hands immediately went to his dark curls, glad he had gone to get a haircut recently, so it wasn’t too out of control. “Um, I don’t know. What do you suggest?”

“Well, we all know Richie likes it natural.” Bev laughed and then realized what exactly she had said, Eddie’s face going red as he quickly glanced over at her dresser. “Sorry, Eddie. I didn’t mean-“

“No, it’s okay.” Eddie interrupted. “I mean, I’d be lying if I said wanting to dress up wasn’t a little bit for him.”

Everything was quiet for a moment, the only noise being the muffled traffic from Bev’s window before Eddie sighed. “I think I want to try again.”

He heard Bev inhale sharply. “You know how we would all love for you and him to be back together, Eddie, but are you ready for that?”

“It’s been almost seven months, Bev.” Eddie sighed, moving over so he could sit down on her plush California king bed. “I don’t think ignoring what I feel for him is helping. I mean, I’m living with him right now and lately…”

“Yeah?” Bev started softly.

“Lately,” Eddie continued softly, looking down at his hands in his lap. “I see Richie again, not Henry. I still have that slight fear sometimes, but it’s kind of faded and I think being with him, the real him, has helped.”

“So…” Bev sighed. “You think going back into a relationship will help heal things faster?”

Eddie grimaced and threw himself back onto the mattress with a groan. “When you say it out loud it sounds really stupid.”

He heard Bev make a humming sound, then felt the bed dip near his waist, turning his head so he could look at her upside down.

“I don’t think it’s stupid, Eddie.”

“You don’t?” He pushes himself up onto his elbows.

Bev shook her head. “No, it makes sense. Sometimes, yeah, getting space from a problem helps and it gives you what you need to think things through.”

Bev swallowed audibly and picked at a loose thread on her blouse. “Other times, it means you’re just running because you’re too scared to look back because you’re worried everything will still be the same.”

Eddie wasn’t sure if she was talking about him or her right then, but her words were still true, and he sat up so he could nudge her with his shoulder. She seemed to snap out of it, grinning and leaning over so she could shove him back gently.

“Anyway,” Bev continued when a small shrug. “If you feel sure and good about it, then I completely support your choice to move in that direction. God knows Richie will be happy, his freaking love looks at you during meetings we’re makes all of us kind of sick.”

Eddie flushed red and pushed at her again, this time a little harder even though he knew it would budge her. Stupid insane strength!

“S-Shut up, Bev.” He cried, hands going to his cheeks to try and cool them down. “That...he doesn’t do that.”

“Okay, I can’t tell if you’re just blind or in denial, but he absolutely does.”

Eddie frowned, trying to make it look like he wasn’t pleased with this information when really it made him feel light. The idea of starting again was scary, but if he had Richie with him then he could finally really have the man he loved him, and they could start fresh. Eddie smiled gently at the thought, then jumped when Bev suddenly sprung from the bed.

“Alright! Come on, Kaspbrak!” Bev yelled as she moved over to the shoes she had brought out. “We don’t have all day. Your prince will be here to pick you up in like two hours.”

Eddie laughed as he pushed off the bed as well, going over and trying on the different shoes like she instructed.

He’d tell Richie tonight.

Suddenly the tight barbed string that he felt had been wrapped around his throat for the last six months seemed to loosen and he felt like he could breathe again.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Georgie moved in a circle on his knees, the thick piece of white chalk standing out starkly against the dark wood of Bill’s living room floor.

“That better not stain my floor.” Bill piped up from the other side of the room, arms crossed over his chest as he watched Georgie work.

“It won’t.” Georgie replied, grinning, then added under his breath, “I think.”

They had followed the trail that the forest had given Mike, only finding an old broken well where the trail stopped. Stan and Bill debated on whether or not they should go in to do recon, but in the end, Stan won, and they decided that Georgie should do his work before they did anything.

Georgie sprinkled a fine line of salt across every entrance in the apartment, quickly moving to light the three candles laid out on the outside of his circle. He looked over his handiwork with a small nod and turned to look at his brother.

“You brought the dried sage, right?”

Bill held up a brown paper with a frown and Georgie nodded. “Good. We might need that after.”

Right before Georgie was about to step into the circle, he saw Bill push away from the wall and grab him gently by the arm. Georgie frowned and looked up at his brother, softening when he saw the clearly worried look on the Bill’s face.

“You remember our rules?”

“Yes.” Georgie replies, moving his hand to rest on Bill’s. “If anything seems out of the ordinary, I come back immediately.”

“I mean it.” Bill’s tone was serious, and Georgie suppressed the urge to sigh and roll his eyes.

“I know. I promise.”

Bill held onto him for another moment before letting go and stepping back. Georgie turned back to the circle and took a deep breath before he crossed the chalk line and moved to sit down in the middle. He closed his eyes and rolled his head between his shoulders a few times, letting his body relax as he started to him softly the tune, he remembered his mother would sing for him to fall asleep.

Soon his body felt light, fingertips were numb with cold, and he knew where he was.

He let his eyes open to the dark emptiness that was the Styx, looking down to see the soft lights of souls bobbing around his legs as the current took them to their final place. Carefully, he stood up, apologizing to the few lights he jostled and slowly made his way forward through the river. It only took a minute before he found the first soul, glowing bright blue unlike the rest who were a dull green, and he moved towards it. When he reached it, Georgie bent down and gently cupped the soul in his hands, gasping softly when suddenly he was in a sun lit bedroom filled with superheroes and action figures.

If he listened, he could hear the soft sounds of the city outside and someone humming from somewhere else in the apartment. He turned when he heard something creek and came face to face with one of the children from the posters. The boy was no older than eleven, small for his age with glasses that continued to slip down his nose no matter how many times he pushed them up.

“Why’re you here?” The boy asked, Keenan if Georgie could remember correctly, and he turned to close his closet fully.

“I’m here because I need to talk to you.” Georgie replied softly, not wanting to scare the boy in his own personal limbo. “I need to ask you some questions about...the day you died.”

Keenan looked sad and Georgie felt guilty.

“Is that alright?”

Keenan was quiet for a few moments before he nodded and moved to sit on the Superman bedspread, looking up at Georgie expectantly. Georgie moves to sit on the bed as well, shifting a little to get more comfortable.

“Mind if we start?”

Keenan gave a small shrug, so Georgie just pushed through because nothing would make this easy. “I need to ask you about what you remember about that night, or anything weird that led up to it.”

The boy’s shoulders hunched under his thin t-shirt, his hands clasped together and thumbs twiddling as he seemed to think about what he wanted to say.

“I remember,” Keenan started softly. “I remember walking home from school, and I had to go by this old apartment building. It had all of this old brick with the stuff frowning on it and there were like a bunch of cats, but no people.”

The boy’s brow furrowed in concentration. “One of the doors on the bottom apartments opened as I walked by, but no one came out. My mom told me I needed to be home by a certain time, so I was going to just walk past but then something called my name.”

Georgie frowned when he noticed the boy’s shoulders had started to shake slightly and he reached out to gently rest a hand on the boy’s back. Georgie couldn’t remember his death, just fuzzy thoughts and memories, but for this kid it was still fresh.

“Is that where you died?”

Keenan nodded and started to cry, moving to wipe at his hands with his fists. “I should have listened to my mom. Now, I’ll never get to see her or my sister again!”

Georgie didn’t even hesitate as he pulled the young soul into his arms and let him cry against his shoulder. They sat together on that peaceful room, a soft breeze blowing through the window and making the wind hung there ring softly. When Keenan seemed to calm down, he pulled away from Georgie and wiped at his face giving a few sniffs before sighing.

“Keenan, is there anything you can tell me about what did that to you?”

Keenan was silent for a very long time, so long that Georgie had worried he had disturbed the spirit too much and would be kicked out, but Keenan turned to look up at him with a serious expression. Georgie noticed that Keenan’s eyes had become glassy and he reached out to touch the boy’s face, frowning with it was cold like ice.

“When it ate us, we became one with it.”

Georgie felt sick as Keenan’s eyes slid shut. “Who, Keenan?”

The boy’s hands began to shake, then his arms and soon his whole body started jerk as if he were having a seizure. Georgie moves to grab him by the shoulders, but froze when the boy’s body froze, eyes opening to show gold.

“It came from the stars.” Keenan whispered, eyes staring up at something past Georgie’s shoulder, but when Georgie looked there was nothing. “It and the Turtle.”

“Stars?” Georgie breathed, mind quickly traveling to Eddie. “Is it an alien, Keenan? Is that what the creature is?”

Suddenly Keenan was looking at him again and not off to the side, those golden eyes almost boring in Georgie before Keenan reached over and grabbed Georgie’s arm harshly. His small fingers dig into Georgie’s forearm like needles and he could feel Keenan start to tug with more strength than it should have been possible.

“You caught me off guard once, dead boy.” Keenan’s face twisted into a gruesome grin and he let out a husky laugh that was far too low for a child so young. “I won’t make that mistake again. Ey, Georgie?”

Georgie hissed as he tried to pull away, but the grip was crushing and he fell off the bed, onto his knees as whatever this thing was started to pull on his arm.

“Tell me,” The creature cooed, Keenan’s face taking on a different form. His skin started to fall away to reveal something white underneath, but his grin stayed wide. “If I pull your arm off, will it grow back like a newt?”

It gave a harsh pull and Georgie could feel the tendons in his arm starting to rip and he cried out as he tried to pull away. He tried to back out of the soul’s limbo, the place was obviously corrupted by this evil thing, but when he tried, he was blocked.

“Now now, can’t have you running off.” Sharp teeth formed in that grin and Its jaw started to unhinge. A bright shining light shone from inside that horrible mouth. “Maybe I should just bite the damned thing off!”

Georgie screamed. “BILL!”

The horrible pulling was gone and when Georgie opened his eyes again, he was back in his brother’s apartment, Bill crouched over him looking terrified.

“Georgie! What happened?” Bill barked in his leader voice, but Georgie could tell from the way it cracked that Bill was scared.

Georgie took deep gulping breaths, the action helping even though his lungs didn’t need it and he placed a hand over his chest because he could have sworn his non beating heart was going insane. He was thankful Bill let him have that moment to calm down and he groaned when he tried to sit up, his arm weirdly sore which was impossible because none of that had happened in the psychical realm.

“Georgie…”

Georgie sighed and looked up at his brother with a worried look. “We need to talk to Eddie.”

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

Richie stopped in front of his full-length mirror and looked himself over, surprised that he actually liked what he saw. Not that he thought Bev had been lying when she said she knew what she was doing, but long and skinny was sometimes hard to make look attractive. He had opted for contacts tonight, eyes wide and blue now that the large frames weren’t in the way.

He turned to the side and flipped up the back of his black tailored tuxedo jacket, taking a picture of himself in the mirror and immediately sending it to Bev with the text: _Why can’t your clothes give me an ass? D:_

Richie chuckled at his own humor before going back to primping.

His hair was always a lost cause unless he tried to slick it back or something, but the slick look he felt always looked weird on him. He was too many angles and sharp points, so instead he just let his hair curl and puff. His chest felt tight, like it was a jack in the box, and someone kept turning the crank more and more until he was going to burst open.

Going with Eddie as his date was something that, six months ago, he never thought he’d get to have and now here he was, and he wanted to make it the best night Eddie had ever had.

Richie moved over to his chest of drawers to pick up the small velvet box, flipping it open and staring down at the small piece of silver, sapphire, and ruby. He’d designed it back before Eddie and him had ever dated, the idea had just stuck in his head and he had to get it out. Richie would never tell Eddie how much he’d spent on it, but he hoped to god it wouldn’t make Eddie feel weird or worse, upset.

He traced the thin chain with his thumb and sighed before closing the small box and slipping it into the pocket of his pants. He moved into the living room to grab the brand-new black chucks her had bought for the event, Bev hated the idea, but he told her he wouldn’t budge on it, and slipped them on, lacing them up tight.

He checked to make sure he had everything he needed; phone, wallet, keys, the bracelet.

He froze when he reached into his other pocket but couldn’t feel the small beaded cord. He frowned and tried to dig deeper, still finding nothing.

“Oh!” Richie rolled his eyes at himself. He had probably left it in his uniform, and he ran to his closet where his dirty uniform lay inside. He picked it and quickly searched through the multi pockets, dread creeping up on him every time each pocket turned up empty. “No, no, no!”

He quickly stripped the sheets on his bed and shook them out, yelling in frustration when nothing came from it but a sock. He started to frantically search his apartment, the kitchen, the bathrooms, Hell, he even searched through Eddie’s room even though he hadn’t been in there since last week.

“Fuck!” Richie cried as he kicked at the wall. He couldn’t have lost the bracelet! It had been the bracelet that Eddie’s dad and given to Eddie before leaving and for some crazy reason he thought that Richie had deserved to have it. And Richie has taken it, so touched that Eddie cared that much about him and had guarded it with his life…

Until now.

He tried to think back to when he for sure still had it.

He’d had it for work the other night, then when they had battled Hockstetter and when he’d had lunch with his boss.

The last time he could remember having it was…

Fuck.

When Bill and him had gone to look through the sewers in Brooklyn.

Richie sank to the floor of the guest room, not caring if he was messing up the lines of his tux because he was so fucking screwed. Eddie has trusted him with that, and Richie went and lost it in the damn disgusting sewers. He quickly pulled out his phone to check the time, groaning when he had to be at Bev’s to pick up Eddie in thirty minutes.

Okay. Chances of Eddie asking to see the bracelet tonight were slim, but that didn’t mean he would never ask. He needed to find that bracelet and he would, even if it killed him.

Richie sighed as he picked himself up, mood a little soured because of this whole hell but he wasn’t going to show it. Damn it, this was supposed to be a fun night!

He gave himself a shake before nodding and stepping out the door.

It wasn’t often that he drove, sometimes he couldn’t even believe he owned a car when he lived in New York City, but he couldn’t imagine him and Eddie walking nine miles dressed to the nines. He was able to find a parking spot that wasn’t too far away from Benveray Manor, sprinting across Park Avenue and sighing when he was stopped by the doorman.

“Lionel,” Richie griped, stamping his foot like the thirty-five-year-old adult he was. “I gotta get up there. You know who I am.”

The tall dark-skinned man made an apologetic face. “I’m sorry Mr. Tozier, but Ms. McCall told security we have to let them know of any visitors before being let up.”

Richie understood, he honestly did, after being attacked like that who wouldn’t want to hole up in their giant penthouse apartment when they had Netflix and delivery. He nodded and moved over to the lounge area, flopping down in one of the overly stuffed leather seats they had facing the fireplace. It squeaked loudly under his weight and he couldn’t help the chuckle under his breath at it because he was actually four.

It wasn’t long until Lionel was signaling that it was alright for Richie to go up and he quickly moved to the elevator, pressing the top floor and keyed in his access code. It was always so crazy when those golden elevator doors opened into the insanity of a living room that Ben had designed.

Frank Lloyd Wright would have been creaming himself.

It was huge and modern, sharp angles that somehow were softened without losing their edge. The floor to ceiling windows overlooked Manhattan in one of the most amazing views Richie had ever seen, letting in the bright sun which made the light maple wood flooring just glow. Bev and Kay had obviously done the decorating, all soft dark leathers with creams and sharp bursts of bright reds and blues thrown in expertly.

All with a fucking floating waterfall off near the back.

 _It’s calming_ Bev had said.

 _It makes me want to pee_ Eddie had replied and Richie had wanted to marry him on the spot.

“Richie! Is that you?” He heard Bev call from upstairs as he moved to sit on one of the soft couches.

“How else would it be?” He yelled back.

“Shut up! We’ll be down in a second!” There was silence before she yelled again. “And don’t you dare touch the waterfall!”

He grinned; she still hadn’t forgiven him for using his powers on it last time.

He fiddled with his phone for a few minutes, looking on his map to try and remember where him and Bill had gone down in the sewers yesterday, but when he heard footsteps he looked up and couldn’t breathe.

Oh.

Oh _wow._

Eddie looked...Richie gulped as he let his eyes travel down and then back up the other man. Dear lord, Bev was a goddamn genius. Eddie was short, but the way the suit was cut made him look taller, the pants just tight enough to show off his powerful thighs without being obscene. The jacket made his already broad shoulders even more so and his waist was so fucking tiny that he looked like a god damn dorito.

The sexiest damn dorito in the world.

Bev had probably done his hair, pushing that amazing head of brown curls back loosely so it was out of his face, but still let the curls have their shape.

“Your gawking, Tozier. We know he’s hot but stop drooling on my leather couch.” Bev laughed and Richie instantly glared at her, sticking out his tongue before standing and walking over to the other man.

Eddie’s cheeks were red, and he had a nervous smile on his face and good lord he was trying to kill Richie, wasn’t he?

“You look great.” Richie said softly.

“Thanks.” Eddie replied. “You do too.”

“Thanks.” Richie replied with a grin, sliding his hands into his pockets and cocking his hip to the side. “I know.”

He heard Bev groan and watched Eddie roll his eyes before he let out a loud laugh, holding out his arm to Eddie because he was a gentleman. “Shall we, my dear?”

Eddie reached up and flicked his forehead.

“Ow “ Richie yelped, rubbing what he was sure was a red mark now. “What the fuck?”

“You are such a dork.” Eddie laughed, then wound his arm around Richie’s and pulled. “Yeah, let’s go.”

They made their way back to Richie’s car, Richie waiting until Eddie had his seat buckled before he started the engine. He hesitated for a moment, the weight of Eddie’s present reminding him that it was there, and he could just give it to Eddie now. Turn to him and say-

“You okay?”

“Huh?” Richie jerked, looking over at Eddie in a daze as he tried to get his mind back on track. Quickly he shook his head and smiled, turning the gear shift into reverse so they could pull out. “Oh, yeah. I’m fine, sorry. Ready?”

The drive there only took a few minutes, but it was a nice drive. Eddie told him about his day at work, how luckily the insurance had bought their excuse for why the concrete in the middle of the garage had a giant black crater in the middle of it, and Richie suggested getting drinks after.

When they pulled up to the hall, Richie was disappointed, the bright flashes of cameras and people just right outside making him want to hide Eddie away. He wanted to go back to his place, order Chinese and chill with Eddie, but they were already here, and Richie sighed before pulling on his camera-ready smile.

Thanks, Dad.

“Let’s go.”

The gala, as always, was a smash hit. Everyone always pulled out all the stops when it came to this every year and it showed.

The food was great, the decorations were like from some story book, people were donating like nuts and the music was killer thanks to them asking for Richie’s input. He watched as Eddie ate the last bite of his chocolate mousse, smiling at the happy look on Eddie’s face.

“You can have mine if you want?” Richie’s offered and grinned when Eddie raised an eyebrow.

“You sure? Don’t you want it?”

Richie shook his head and pushed the small crystal dish over, so it sat in front of the alien man. Eddie delicately took a bite, as if he hadn’t destroyed his own just a second ago and hummed softly at the taste. He watched Eddie eat for a little while longer before reaching into his pocket and letting his hand rest over the small velvet box.

Richie licked his lips, suddenly feeling like all the moisture in the air was gone.

“Hey, Eds?”

Eddie hummed in acknowledgement, taking another bite of his dessert and Richie took a deep breath as he pulled the small box out of his pocket. “I wanna give you something.”

Eddie turned to look at him and if Richie hadn’t been so god damn nervous, he would have bust out laughing at Eddie’s face. The second Eddie saw the box, the small dessert fork in his hand dropped to the table and his face looked like an interesting mix between a deer caught in the headlights and wanting to be sick on the floor.

“R-Richie-?” Eddie squeaked and Richie felt bad.

“It’s not what you think!” He tried to explain, though that was not helping Eddie look any less terrified and he quickly opened the small box to show the necklace inside. Eddie’s expression changed, mouth closing and eyes becoming soft as he glanced between the necklace and Richie.

For a while Eddie only stared at the necklace and Richie gulped, feeling his hands start to grow damp around the small box. “Shit, you hate it, right? It makes things weird, doesn’t it? Fuck. I’m sorry.”

He went to close it, hating himself for thinking this was a good idea, but stopped when he felt Eddie’s hand close over his on the box. Richie looked up at Eddie in surprise, a small gentle smile on Eddie’s face as he took the box from Richie and carefully pulled the silver star pendant front the box.

“It’s beautiful.” He whispered, handing the necklace back to Richie and turning in his chair so his back faced the other. “Put it on me?”

“O-oh. Yeah, sure thing.”

Richie didn’t know why his hands started shaking so bad, the small clasp suddenly becoming the most difficult thing to open. When he was finally able to hold it open and clip it through the loop on the other side, he let out a soft sigh, letting his pinkie brush against the warm skin on the back of Eddie’s neck. Eddie bowed his head for a moment, the curve of his neck so damn beautiful, and then moved so he was facing Richie again.

“How does it look?”

Richie smiled, the small gem studded pendant resting perfectly in the center of Eddie’s chest, and nodded. “It looks great.”

The shared a smile and a look for a long moment before Eddie took Richie’s hand and started to pull him up out of his seat.

“Dance with me.”

“It’s a slow song.” Richie felt the need to point out.

“Yeah, so?” Eddie asked, turning to walk backwards so he could face Richie as he pulled. “Scared of stepping on my feet?”

Richie only laughed and shook his head, pulling Eddie to him when they reached the dance floor and felt his head spin when instead of placing his hands on Richie’s shoulders, Eddie just wrapped his arms around Richie’s neck and stepped closer. They started that awkward prom shuffle, the one where they literally just shifted their weight from foot to foot so they would sway slowly, but Richie loved it because he didn’t have to think. All he had to do was mindlessly sway as he watched Eddie bite his lower lip and started to blush which was odd, but he wouldn’t trade it for the world.

“I wanted to talk to you about something.” Eddie whispered and Richie had to lean his head forward a little more, almost resting their foreheads together. Eddie cleared his throat. “About us.”

“Oh?” Richie tried to sound calm, but the crack in his voice gave his panic away and Eddie looked up worriedly.

“It’s not bad. At least, I hope you don’t think it’s bad.”

Richie took a deep steadying breath, remembering this moment in case it was the last time Eddie wanted something like this. “Just tell me, Spaghetti.”

Eddie didn’t even comment on the nickname, which Richie didn’t know if that was better or worse, and let out a small soft breath. “I want to be with you, Richie. Like before…”

Richie stopped moving immediately, Eddie bumping into him because he wasn’t expecting it and looked up at him with a nervous expression. Richie stared down at him in shock, a feeling he couldn’t properly describe because happiness wasn’t enough got logged in his throat and he watched as Eddie bit his lip again.

“Sorry, you probably, um, sorry. Just can we-“Eddie tried to pull away, but Richie was quicker for once in his god damn life. He pulled Eddie close again, arms going around the other man’s waist and he held on tightly, leaning down his mouth was next to Eddie’s ear.

“You’re sure?” He whispered, almost crying when he felt Eddie whisper yes.

“Can I kiss you? Please let me kiss you.” He begged softly and he felt Eddie shiver and then nod.

Richie wasted no goddamn time, he didn’t care that the room was filled with the New York elite, he didn’t care that they were in the middle of the dance floor and he didn’t fucking care who saw. He cupped the back of Eddie’s head, long fingers threading through dark brown curls, and leaned down to press the softest of kisses against Eddie’s slightly open mouth. He gulped when he felt Eddie’s breath hitch, then jumped when Eddie grabbed his face in both hands and pushed their lips together firmly.

Oh.

Oh fuck.

Richie had forgotten had amazing it was to kiss Eddie. His warmth, his soft lips, the way he fucking smelled, all of it making everything so much better. He dared to open his mouth just the slightest to brush the tip of his tongue against Eddie’s bottom lip carefully and Eddie folded then.

They shouldn’t have been heavily making out in the middle of a gala, but Richie couldn’t careless and only pulled when he saw a flash go off behind his closed eyelids.

God, he had forgotten journalists were here to cover the event. Shit, what if Eddie ended up in the paper against his will because Richie couldn’t keep his lips off him. He opened his mouth to apologize but stopped when he saw the large dopey grin on Eddie’s face and Richie felt his heartbeat fast.

He was the reason for that smile.

Fuck.

He grabbed Eddie’s hand, placing a soft kiss on the knuckles before tugging on Eddie’s arm gently. “Let’s go home.”

Eddie didn’t argue at all and they quickly went outside to get the keys to the car from the valet. The ride back to Richie’s apartment was quiet, but it was a comfortable happy quiet and Eddie played with Richie’s free hand while the drove. It took them forever to get into the apartment because they kept pulling each other close, laughing and giving soft butterfly kisses everywhere. The nose, eyelids, cheeks, forehead and very gently the lips.

When they finally made it in the door, Eddie gave him a toe-curling kiss against it and then backed off with a small smile. “Mind if we...just go a little slower? Just for the first few days?”

Richie beamed. “Oh baby, for you I’d go the speed of deep space for you.

Eddie frowned. “Is that slow?”

Richie’s smile turned into a smirk. “You’re the half alien you tell me.”

Eddie rolled his eyes with a huff. “Richie.”

Richie laughed and nodded his head as he leaned his head against the door. “Yeah, it’s fucking slow. How about you get your cute butt into some pajamas and I’ll order some pizza.”

Eddie cocked an eyebrow at him, but the smile on his face showed how he really felt. “We just ate a four-course meal.”

“Are you saying you don’t want carbs and grease Mr. crazy metabolism?”

“Fair point!” Eddie chirped and started to make his way to the guest room where his stuff was. “I’ll be right back!”

Richie watched like a lovesick puppy as Eddie ran down the hall and disappeared into his room. He let out a content sigh and pushed away from the door, knowing he could change too before they ate and moved to place his keys on the counter when he remembered something.

The bracelet.

“Shit…” Richie glances back towards the guest room, the door was still partially open, and he could hear Eddie rummaging around.

He could go get it quickly.

With his powers he could find it easily and be back home within forty minutes tops.

“Hey, Eds!” He called out, hearing an answering hum. “I need to run a quick errand, but I’ll be back soon, okay? Start setting up Netflix!”

He didn’t wait for an answer, quickly running back out the door, pulling his subway card out of his wallet as he made his way to the Brooklyn sewers.

It would be easy.

 

 

 

 

 

A day later, Richie still hadn’t come back home.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Georgie goes to speak to dead child about how he was killed by Pennywise.
> 
> \- Mike and Stan fight off IT with a baseball bat and knife.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am truly sorry this took so long to update! Thank you for keeping with me everyone and I hope you enjoy this update!
> 
> Warnings below!

 

_They had kissed against the door, Richie’s lips only slightly chapped as Eddie deepened it, all the feelings of love and hurt from over the year coming out into the kiss. When he pulled away, he could see the love drunk look on Richie’s face and Eddie’s heart soared. “Mind if we...just go a little slower? Just for the first few days?”_

_Richie gave him such an amazing smile that Eddie felt his heart jump a little. “Oh baby, for you I’d go the speed of deep space for.”_

_Eddie frowned. “Is that slow?”_

_Richie’s smile turned into a smirk. “You’re the half alien you tell me.”_

_Eddie had rolled his eyes with a huff. “Richie.”_

 

Eddie ran shaky hands through his hair, his fifth cup of coffee sitting cold on the table next to him as he poured over the blueprints of the city. It had been three days since Richie had left him to go run an errand and everyone knew immediately that something had happened.

 

_“Hey, Eds!” He’d heard Richie call from the front door. “I need to run a quick errand, but I’ll be back soon, okay? Start setting up Netflix!”_

 

_And he was gone._

 

The team had checked every hideout they could think of, then turned to the maximum security prisons to ask questions. Absolutely none of them were helpful in any way and Eddie had been banned by Bill from stepping even one foot near Bower’s containment chamber.

Not one person had seen Richie or knew where he was.

It was like he had vanished.

Eddie felt a sense of dread, remembering what Ben had brought up at their emergency meeting. What if the creature that had been stalking them had gotten to Richie while he was out? It tended to only attack while they were alone so he thought it was a viable idea.

Eddie hated that idea, because he was alone with that creature for only thirty minutes and if the others hadn’t come to save him, he probably wouldn’t have made it.

Richie had been gone for three whole days.

What if he…

“Stop it, Eddie.” He whispered to himself, wiping at his eyes when he noticed the blueprints becoming blurry. He had no time to cry, he had to find Richie because he’d be damned if they had just come together only to be torn apart like this.

He glanced down when he felt a small nudge against his foot.

Pasta stared up and him sadly while she sat and whimpered. The poor fat thing had never had to spend this long away from Richie and Eddie felt a connection with him because of that. He leaned down to scratch behind his ear, Pasta leaning his tan little head into the scratch, but still not seeming happier.

“I know, Ta. I miss him too.” He knew the dog must be sad because he didn’t try to snap at Eddie’s fingers when he moved to rub the spot between his wide dark eyes. “But I’m going to find him, okay? I promise.”

Eddie sighed as he looked back over at the blueprints. 

He had called into work the past couple of days, his crew seemed extremely worried since Eddie never took a day off unless it was something really serious. He had assured them that he was alright, but when he looked in the mirror, he had to wonder. Even though he didn’t need much sleep and his alien blood kept him looking younger than most humans, these past three days really took their toll on him.

He didn’t sleep at all. He spent every moment he could outside looking for Richie, fighting crime when needed and then going right back to searching as soon as the police came. He would have kept going until he collapsed if Bill hadn’t forced him to go home, eat and sleep.

He wasn’t allowed to do anything until he’d showered and had at least seven hours of sleep.

Eddie had trudged back to Richie’s apartment, fed Pasta quietly, showered and then wrapped himself up in one of Richie’s sweatshirts.

He laid in Richie’s big empty bed and cried for the first time in a while until he passed out.

He still wore Richie’s shirts, the warmth of the fabric mixing with the smell of Richie seemed to help Eddie focus instead of wallow in misery. He was just about to get up and make another cup of coffee and go over the blueprints again when his communicator started to beep. 

Only the team called that line!

Eddie ran over to the coffee table where he had left it, quickly slipping it into his ear and turning it on.

“Nova here.” He answered, voice brisk. “What’s happening?”

“Nova, it’s Ranger.” Bill replied. “We might have a lead on Riptide. Soul was able to trace what he thinks might be Riptide.”

Eddie's heart shot up into his throat at what that could mean and he took a moment to gather his wits before replying to Bill. If Georgie could find Richie, that meant that Richie was...

“Does that mean….mean-oh god, fuck, Bill I can’t if he is.”

Bill must have realized how hard this was on Eddie because he didn’t even try to reprimand Eddie for using his real name on communicator. Instead, he heard Bill make a soft shushing noise, as if trying to comfort a small child and Eddie wanted to hate it, but couldn’t.

“He’s not dead, Nova.” Bill reassured quietly. “Of all the things Soul could gather from the children is that Riptide is still alive.”

“Oh god.” Eddie groaned, then quickly stood up and ran to his closet to change. “Where are you? We need to go wherever Soul is picking this up from.”

“The sewers.”

Eddie rolled his eyes, hating this fucking stupid creature for what it had done and how predictable it was to still be hiding in the sewers. “Of course it’s there. Fuck, I should have gone down there to look when I had that thought. Are you calling the rest of the team? We need to suit up and go find him.”

“We will, Nova.” Bill stated softly and Eddie tried not to snap at how unsure Bill seemed. “But we need to plan it first. That thing had figured out our worst fears, we need to have a plan for going down there and finding Riptide.”

Eddie let out a frustrated groan, Bill waiting patiently while Eddie got it out of his system. Eddie huffed, tapped his foot and then sighed, knowing in the end that Bill was right. “Fine. The tower?”

“Yep.”

“I’ll see you there.”

Eddie packed his bag quickly, his uniform and mask, a spare change of clothes as well as a change of clothes for Richie because he was alive, damn it. 

He had to be.

It was always risky flying without his mask on, but it was truly the fastest way to travel and Eddie poured Pasta his helping for dinner before running up to the roof of Richie’s apartment building. He pulled his coat tighter around himself when the chilly wind hit him in the face, his body already starting to heat up as he found the silhouette of the Guilds Tower in the distance. He hitched his backpack up onto his shoulder and let his power spike.

Eddie’s body was aglow with gold as he shot up into the sky and over towards the tower at breakneck speed.

He landed on the balcony with ease, his hair an absolute mess, but he didn’t care and he moved towards the glass doors. Eddie pulled them open, the large meeting table right there with Bill and Ben around it.

Georgie was laying on top of it, with a large weird symbol drawn around him in the wood. His eyes were closed and he looked as if he were sleeping, but Eddie knew better.

“How long has he been under?” Eddie asked quietly, more toward Ben as Bill watched his brother carefully.

Ben gave a small shrug. “No more than fifteen minutes. He’s trying to get the exact location so we aren’t wandering the sewers for ages.”

“When we need him most, he’s gone.” Bill muttered and Eddie knew what he meant. If they had Richie with them the search would have been over in minutes because of his power and Eddie wondered if that had been the creature’s plan all along.

Eddie ran his hands through his hair, frustrated that he was the only other alien around and yet he had no clue how to fight this thing. Georgie had said the child’s soul had told him that the creature came from the stars, from space, just like Eddie’s dad had and the more he thought of it the more Eddie wondered if they were connected somehow.

They waited quietly while Georgie continued his time, all three leaning over the younger man when his eyelids fluttered open. Bright blue eyes stared up at them before Georgie moved to sit up slowly, Bill helping his brother immediately and getting him a small cup of water first.

“Anything new, Georgie?” Eddie whispered, knowing it took the other a second to adjust to the living world but he needed to know.

Georgie was quiet for a moment, sipping his water slowly, then moved to look at them.

“The children keep telling me that they are very far down. So far down you can’t even hear the trains or the city.” Georgie frowned. “They said it fell here, many years ago and it’s looking to get back home.”

 _To space,_ Eddie corrected in his head. “So, if he’s trying to get back home, why New York? Why not Cape Canaveral? Where they actually launch.”

Georgie pursed his lips, rubbing his temple slightly as if he had a headache, which immediately made Bill start to fuss around him.

“I’m fine, Bill.” Georgie whispered quietly and when Bill started to argue, Georgie shook his head to silence him before looking at Eddie. “They said he needs to find the star. Find the star and eat it. Gain its power to call home.”

“How the hell is it supposed to do that from earth?” Ben questioned softly, turning to his laptop as he started typing. “Technically, the closest star is the sun and if it somehow eats it, Earth would be in a shit load of trouble.”

“Well, then we obviously have to find it before then.”

Eddie frowned. “But Richie first.”

Bill nodded, holding up a hand to tell Eddie to calm down, which made Eddie’s annoyance just rise instead. “We will find Richie, Eddie. He’s our top priority. Always.”

Eddie huffed a little bit, let it go, then all four of them jumped when the red alert sounded through the room. Bill quickly moved to turn on the speaker to his communicator when it started to ring and the group could hear in the way COP Lillies sounded so upset that something was very wrong.

“Guild! We have a major issue.” Her voice was strained. “We need the team right away!”

Eddie scowled, not liking the idea of the whole team going when they still needed to work on finding Richie. He glanced at Bill, trying to communicate with his face that whatever it was could probably easily be handled by just a few of them. Bill caught the silent message and pursed his lips before answering.

“I can send you Power House, Blood Root and Ghost-“

“No!” Lillies cried. “We need everyone!”

“Well, we don’t have-“

“Bowers has escaped!”

Eddie’s entire world went red.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Stan sighed as he pushed the door open for Bev, the redhead raging because they had both been called in from work to go get Eddie from the maximum security prison. Apparently, when hearing the news about Bowers, Eddie lost it, flying from headquarters before Bill or anyone could stop him and started ripping into the guards who were working Bowers chamber.

Stan had been called for backup, Bev was the real hitter when it came to handling Eddie. 

Emotionally and power wise.

“That stupid idiot.” Bev growled as she pushed her way past a group of guards, her hair still up in her work ponytail which made Stan want to laugh. At least both of them were in their suits with their masks on. “I know Bowers and him have a bad history, but he can’t do this! There are rules!”

“I know.” Stan muttered, keeping up with her fast pace easily with his long legs.”When it comes to anything with Riptide, he loses all sense.”

Bev let out a frustrated growl as they were led to the small fenced area where they saw Eddie, vibrant gold energy coming from him. While he still wore his civilians clothes, he luckily had had enough sense to haphazardly try to put his mask on before going on a rampage. Stan sighed as security let them into the small place, the whole prison seeming to heave a sigh of relief now that Bev was there.

Eddie glanced their way, his normal deep brown colored eyes now like two blazing suns and the scowl on his face showed that he wasn’t happy that they had called Bev and him for pick up. Stan held up his hands, showing that he meant no harm, but Bev stomped towards Eddie which caused the ground to quake.

“What the hell are you doing, Nova?” She barked. Bill was the leader, but Bev knew how to get people in line better than anyone. “Are you absolutely out of your mind? Flying in here full powered and everything? Did that year long court trial to stop the government from trying to dissect you mean nothing?”

Stan winced at that. 

When it first came out that Super Nova was in fact an alien and not another power gifted human, the press had gone wild with it and the government freaked out. Even though Eddie had been with the Guild for two year before the information had leaked and had saved the world countless times, they said that they didn’t feel safe with a powerful unknown being walking amongst them. What if he turned on them? What if he called his people to help him destroy Earth? What if, what if, what if?

It was long and grueling.

Stan has never been in court that much in his life.

Bev’s words seemed to make Eddie’s mood worse and he turned towards her with a glare. “He’s gone! Bowers is just gone! These idiots just let him escape!”

“Nova!” Stan snapped, knowing that if Stan had been in the same situation he wouldn’t have been much better, but still. “We can talk about this back at the tower, you need to come with us now.”

Eddie reared his head back as if he were going to argue some more, but when Bev moved closer he just gave a frustrated yell and kicked at the floor. He stared down at the ground for a few seconds in silence before giving a violent shrug. “Fine. Let’s go.”

Stan and Bev didn’t touch him as they walked back out of the prison, the entire staff looked relieved that Eddie was leaving. When they got back into the one of the Guild’s unmarked SUVs, Stan and Bev both turned to look at Eddie who sat in the back looking like his dog had just died.

“Eddie…” Bev started softly, but Eddie gave a small shake of his head.

“I know it was wrong.” He muttered as he watched out the window. “It’s just…”

“Just?” Bev pressed gently when Eddie stopped.

“We just finally figured things out.” Eddie sighed, and Stan could tell by the way his voice wobbled that tears were close. “We were finally able to get over what that bastard has done us, but now all of this is happening.”

People usually called Stan cold and unfeeling, but that wasn’t true at all and he felt his heart beat painfully as he watched one of his closest friends pull in on himself in sadness. Without thinking, he reached back to Eddie, taking the other man’s hand in his and squeezing it tightly.

“Eddie, we will find Richie.” He stated, making sure his tone left no room for argument. “You guys found me in those sprawling sewers and now we are going to do the same for him. We’ve caught Bowers more than twenty times before and we’ll do it again, so stop letting it get in your head. Richie needs you focused.”

Eddie looked up at him, brown eyes watery before they cleared with a look of determination and Eddie nodded his head quickly. He felt Eddie squeeze his hand back and gave both Bev and him a very small smile. 

“Thank you, guys.” He whispered. “And I’m sorry about this, I just...don’t know how he would have escaped.”

“We’ll look at the security footage when we get to the tower.” Bev stated with a nod, her red curls bouncing in the ponytail with the movement. “And we can figure out a plan after Georgie gets a better reading on where Richie is.”

The drive to the tower was a quiet one, no one feeling particularly in a good mood about all that had happened lately. Stan pulled into the garage, letting the gate scan his eye along with punching in his passcode. EASTWOOD, Ben’s A.I confirmed it was Stan, and proceeded to open the gates for them as they drove through and parked.

Bill yelled until he was blue in the face, for once Eddie standing there and taking it without even so much as a word to defend himself. It took a lot for Bill Denborugh to lose his cool, anything to do with Georgie aside, so when Bill lost it, he really lost it. Stan almost felt when Bill brought up being suspended again and Eddie flinched as Bill poked him roughly on the shoulder.

“But I won’t,” Bill stated, voice a tad softer than it had been during his screaming. “I know how important finding Richie is to you and I wouldn’t take you off that, but you have to fucking _swear_ to me Eddie that this won’t happen again.”

Eddie nodded quickly and in a quiet voice replied. “I promise.”

Bill took a deep breath in through his nose and then let it out slowly before nodding. “Good, because if it does you’ll face more than a suspension. Got it?”

“Yes.”

Bill watched Eddie for a moment, hands on his hips and lips pursed, he looked like a father who was disappointed in their child and that was a weird thought. Then Bill nodded again with a sigh, all anger and tension seeming to melt away from his body, leaving him to just look worn and tired. They all watched as their leader moved back towards the conference table where one of Ben’s large holographic screens displayed the layouts of the New York City sewer system.

“Ben is looking over the security footage from the prison now.” Bill said as a few little lights sprang up on the holograph. “We’ll continue trying to narrow down where Richie is.”

 

* * *

 

 

 

Bev bit her lip as she glanced through the very small crack in the door, able to make out the back of Ben’s head as he watched the large screen in front of him.

“EASTWOOD, playback from one am, please.” 

 

_Of course_

 

Bev watched as the security footage from the prison went in reverse quickly before stopping where Ben had requested. It still made her smile how polite he was with his A.I, to the point where everyone else on the team had started acting as if the calm male voice over the speakers were a real man. 

Ben still had yet to move back into their apartment, even though Bev had told him over the phone that he could come back if he wanted. She still was a little uneasy, but that didn’t mean the Ben should have to keep sleeping at a hotel. Ben refused, saying that he didn’t want Bev to feel anything but safe when she saw him and he didn’t care how long it took. God, she loved him. Him and Kay were her rocks and she couldn’t imagine a life where she didn’t have the two of them in it. With that thought in her mind, she pushed the door open a little wider, clearing her throat when that didn’t seem to get Ben’s attention.

Ben’s head turned so quickly, Bev was worried he’d give himself whiplash, and when his eyes focused on her, the love she saw there made her want to wrap him up in her arms. She gave a small smile and wave before slowly making her way over to the large desk he sat at.

“Hey.” She said simply, moving to rest her hip against the desk and putting them only about a foot from each other.

“Hey.” He called softly back.

“Find anything?” She tried not to grin when Ben watched her dazed for a few seconds before quickly turning back to the screen with a bright flush high on his cheeks.

“Uh, not really.” They both glanced at the screen watching as Bowers seems to just walk out of his chamber easily. “Somehow the chamber’s security malfunctioned, but for all of it to happen in one secluded area with none of the other chambers affected…”

“You saying you think he had help?”

Ben looked over at her, his eyebrow cocked in that special way that meant he was in a teasing mood. “I’m not saying it, I’m declaring it. Look.”

He asked EASTWOOD to roll back the tape again and Bev turned to she could watch closely when the video started to play. She watched as Bowers sat in his chamber, turned away from the camera on his cot with his shoulders hunched. There was no sound, but they both saw a moment when Bowers snapped to attention suddenly, his head turning quickly as if he had heard something off to the left of his chamber. Bev frowned when his lips started to move, saying something and then pausing...as if waiting for a response.

“Is he...talking to someone?” Bev asked slowly, Bowers getting up out of his cot to move toward the spot he had been looking at.

“It looks like it, but, EASTWOOD,” Ben called to his A.I, swiping across the large screen so that the video of Bowers moved and shrank so it could share a screen with another video. “Pull up the footage from outside Bowers chamber.”

EASTWOOD did as it was told, the video outside the chamber playing at the exact time slot as the one from inside the chamber. 

There was absolutely no one there.

Henry Bowers looked as if he was having a complete conversation with himself. Bev frowned at this continued for a few more minutes, then jumped when Bowers seemed to become enraged, rushing at the thick bullet proof glass of the chamber and banging on it with his fists. He started yelling, though Bev couldn’t hear because no audio had actually been recorded.

Suddenly, they watched as the large heavy metal door unlocked and swung open without anyone touching it.

“What the fuck?” Bev whispered, knowing Ben was nodding in agreement beside her. “Could it be someone with Stan’s powers? I mean, we haven’t come across someone else with them, but…”

Ben pursed his lips and shook his head. “No, if it’s someone like Stan, they would have had to become physical in order to speak. There was no one on the other side of that chamber ever.”

“So, invisible?”

“If they are, infrared wasn't able to pick them up.”

Bev sighed, raking her fingernails over her scalp in an attempt to get rid of some of this stress she could feel starting to build. Why did the really serious things always happen when she was trying to put out a new line? She was already falling behind after the creature attacked her, which then led to her holding up in her room terrified so she was set back even further.

“Have you been sleeping okay?”

Bev turned to look at Ben, his face toward the screen but she could tell that he was only doing it so a head on stare wouldn’t freak her out. She felt a small loving smile tug at the corner of her mouth. “Yeah, I’m sleeping alright.”

“That’s good.” He gave her a small glance and nervous smile. “I’m glad.”

“Yeah,” she drawled, biting her bottom lip. “But you know, the bed is really too big for just two.”

She watched as his body went tense, jaw clenching a little and he licked his lips nervously before turning to face her fully. “Bev…”

“I’m serious, Ben.”

“So am I.” He replied, before sighing. “I just don’t want you to force yourself because you feel bad. You know I care more about you and how you’re feeling over sleeping in my own apartment.”

“ _Ben_ ,” Bev groaned before moving to stand in Ben’s space and forcing him to crane his neck up to look at her from his position in the chair. She poked him in the chest as gently as she could, smiling when he still winced a little. “I know you want to protect me and my feelings, but right now you’re kind of ignoring what I’m saying because you _think_ you know what I need.”

She could see when the realization hit him and she quickly put two fingers under his chin to tilt his head back up when he tried to duck it in shame. His wide dark eyes looked so ashamed and she clicked her tongue gently when he uttered a soft apology.

“It’s fine, honey.” She hummed. “I know you have my best interests at heart, but when I say I’m alright. You have to trust me.”

Ben gave a silent nod and Bev leaned down to press a soft kiss to his forehead, his skin and smell so unlike Kay’s and they had both missed their Ben so much. She smiled when he reached up to touch one of her curls and she turned her head to kiss his wrist when she saw it.

“Ben!” Ben pulled away as if he had been burned, but Bev quickly pointed to the screen. “Rewind it!”

Bev watched the screen as he did, watching the small corner she had glanced at for a second like a hawk until she saw it again. “EASTWOOD pause it!”

The picture on the screen froze and Bev’s eyes widened, pointing up at the hideous deformed face hidden behind one of the pillars outside the chamber. The golden eyes and ugly face that she remembered from her nightmares, the face that always laughed as she tried to pull the tumor child from herself.

“Oh god, Ben.” She whispered. “It’s the thing. It helped Bowers.”

“Fuck.”

 

* * *

 

Richie’s body _hurt._

That was the very first thing he noticed when he started to wake up. The way his bones groaned and his muscles screamed as he tried to move from the hard surface he was laying on made him want to cry out. The second thing he noticed was the almost empty feeling through his body, like under his skin was numb.

His powers weren’t there.

He could hear water dripping and distantly rushing, and from the smell around him, he guessed he was still down in the sewers. He tried, so hard to reach out to the water, to make that connection that had been as easy as breathing since he was young. 

He was met with complete silence.

“F-fuck.” He croaked, trying to open his eyes and only seeing dark blurs. “Damn it.”

His glasses were gone.

That’s what he got for going looking for a bracelet in a demon infested sewer without backup. God, if he ever got out of this, Eddie was going to give him the yelling of the century. Richie sighed at the memory of how he’d left Eddie, happy against Richie’s apartment door and he _prayed_ Eddie figured out something had happened.

He’d never disappear on Eddie willingly and he hoped his….boyfriend? He hoped his boyfriend knew that.

The more he came to, he figured out his hands were bound behind his back, his entire weight laying on them which was why he couldn’t feel them at all. He took a few calming breaths, trying to remember what had happened and how he ended up where the hell here was. He had used his powers to find the bracelet and he had started to get ready to head back up when he’d heard a voice call out to him.

 Richie had known better than to chase it, full body on alert as he started back the way he came, trying to keep a barrier of water around him best he could. The voice continued to follow him, it sounding so much like Eddie, but Richie kept looking straight ahead until he heard the tiniest voice whisper in his ear…

“Beep Beep, Richie.”

Everything was a blur and then nothing but darkness after that. 

Richie tried his best to roll onto his side, his entire body screaming at him to stop but he pushed through. He gritted his teeth as he leaned his weight on his shoulder and the alarming shock of pain it caused told him that something was wrong with it. “Jesus fuck. Please just be dislocated.”

He took a few moments to rest, mentally trying to pump himself up to push off with his shoulder before nodding his head and trying to push. 

It hurt like hell. “Fuck!”

Unfortunately, he only made it up so far before something grabbed his other shoulder and slammed him back down onto the ground. Richie screamed in agony, his shoulder throbbing as he was kicked over back onto his back. He heard the thing walk around him, it’s heavy shoes loud on the wet cement and he squinted when a blurry face moved into his line of sight. 

“Did you miss me, fag?”

Richie choked at that familiar voice and suddenly the slightly yellow blurs around the face made sense. 

It was Henry Bowers shitty ass mullet.

No. No. That wasn’t Bowers.

This creature preyed on fears and even if Bowers wasn’t his top fear, the dickhead’s face still made Richie want to jerk away in disgust. Richie winced when he felt something cold and hard run along his cheek, knowing exactly what it was. Bowers favorite fucking knife, the same one he had used to carve up all his hypnotized victims the day Richie had been…

“Fuck off, you ass munch!” Richie hissed. “I know that’s not really him. Your stupid ass didn’t think we’d learn after you attacked us all individually?”

The laugh he let out sounded hysterical, but he wasn’t going to show this thing an inch of fear. He needed to get out of here, needed to make it back to Eddie.

“That’s real sloppy planning, Bud. You’re a real sloppy bitch.”

He heard the creature snort and then laugh before it slid something over Richie’s face and suddenly everything was clear. Seeing Henry ‘Hypno’ Bowers up close again after so long was more jarring than Richie had thought it would be and he had to keep reminding himself that this wasn’t really Bowers. The thing smirked just like Bowers though, reaching down to grab him by the collar of his shirt and hoist him into a sitting position. Richie let out a yelp when it jostled his arm and he glared at the thing as it scratched at its cheek with the flat side of its knife.

God, it even had Bowers motions and mannerisms down perfectly.

“What the fuck do you even want?” Richie bit out. “I’m not scared of you.”

“I don’t need you to be scared of me.” The thing replied, it’s voice pitched low in Bowers heavy almost southern accent. “I just need a Richie puppet again.”

Richie blinked, a confused furrow between his brow. “But you can’t mimic powers…”

The smile Bowers had on his face made a cold awful pit form in Richie’s stomach, the same smile he’d had on his face at the courthouse when they had released him from the hospital. It was gleeful and satisfied, letting everyone who saw it know that he was so very pleased with the outcome.

“You think I’m that fucked up clown in a disguise.” Bowers threw his head back and laughed, the sound echoing loudly off the walls of the sewer chamber they were in. “You fucking idiot.”

“Shit!” Richie gasped and immediately turned his head to look away from the other man. He still had his own thoughts running through his head, so he was pretty sure Bowers hadn’t done anything yet, but he had to make sure not to make eye contact again or he’d be gone. “What the fuck do you want, Bowers? Nova isn’t here and like hell I’m going to let you get near him again like last time.”

“Oh, Eddie.” Richie felt sick hearing Eddie’s real name come from Bowers mouth, knowing he was the reason Bowers had found it out. “That stupid little alien. All this fuss over him, I really don’t get it, but I can’t complain. As long as I do my part I get to have all I want and more.”

“What the hell does that mean?!” Richie yelled, resisting the urge to look up and glare at Bowers but it was hard when they were talking about Eddie. 

Something to do with Eddie. 

Something bad most likely.

Bowers was silent for a bit, the only sound was rushing water and the slow scraping sound as Bowers dragged his knife across the cement. Then he heard Bowers move over to the side of the chamber, not sure what he was doing because he refused to look besides a small glance at Bowers feet.

“This fucking psycho,” Bowers started, tapping the toe of his boot against the ground softly. “He whispers all these things in my ear. About how he finally has a way of contact, that he now has a way to contact the others…”

Bowers voice had gone off, like he was reading from something instead of speaking on his own.

“The bracelet was the key, the way to reach home and now all he needs...is to eat the star.”

Richie licked his lips, stealing a quick glance at Bowers and noticed that the other was looking off into the distance, as if his mind was not with his body. Richie took in a shaky breath, worried what it meant that Eddie’s bracelet was what this thing needed in order to call out to space.

“What star?” He asked softly, licking his dry cracked lips and praying Bowers wouldn’t answer with what he was thinking.

“The star that burns brightly even though he is only half. The son of Feraunuk and the only Bo’wérn within range.” Bowers turned his way and Richie quickly averted his eyes again, panic growing in his stomach at Bowers words. “He will tear the star limb from limb and eat his flesh, then he will gain the power to call back home.”

Fear ran through Richie, followed by the blinding hilarity at the idea that this alien thought he could just walk in and eat Eddie like it was that easy. Eddie was a fucking power house of energy, this thing might also be an alien, but Richie had seen what Eddie was capable of.

“Good luck.” Richie spat, then gave a chuckle. “Eddie will wipe a stain like that thing out of existence, just like he tried to do with you.” 

“Mmm…” Bowers hummed, not seeming at all concerned with Richie’s words. “That’s why we have you.”

Richie felt his heart stop, body going chillingly cold at what Bowers was implying. “He wouldn’t.”

“For you?” Bowers laughed, suddenly his manic self again. “Please! I’ve seen how the fag looks at you! All the things he whispered in your ear that I heard? He’d gladly get eaten if it meant saving you.”

Richie felt tears come to his eyes, he’d had no idea that learning how much someone loved him could hurt this bad.

“Bowers...please.”

That’s when the two of them heard a shout echo through the tunnels, Richie’s name being yelled over and over by more than one person. 

_No. Eddie!_

“Eddie!” Richie yelled. “Get out of her-!”

The blinding pain of being struck in the side of the head by something solid made Richie see stars and then his vision started to swim. He fell over onto his side, the pain from it muted by the world slowly going black the last thing he saw was Eddie’s masked face hovering over his. 

Beautiful brown eyes wide with worry and he distantly felt those small sure hands touch his head.

 

“Ri…..chi……...Ric…..ie.” 

 

Richie could feel himself slipping, consciousness was losing the battle quickly and he tried to make a sound for Eddie but it stuck in his throat.

 

“It….okay, Ri…...I...got……...you.”

 

 

 

 _I love_ _you._

 

 

 

It was his last thought before he fell into darkness.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Use of homophobic slur - Henry calls Richie and Eddie Fa**
> 
> Come yell at me on tumblr at [Xandertheundead](https://xandertheundead.tumblr.com/) !

**Author's Note:**

> Consent Issues- There is a flashback explaining that Eddie and Richie had sex while Richie was under hypnosis, meaning he was not of sound mind while his body was doing it. Richie was being hypnotized by a villain and Eddie was not aware of this when he decided to have sex with Richie. This will be further looked into in other chapters as well.
> 
> Missing Children - This tag may or may not change based on the status of the children. I will make sure to change the tag if it does so please check that if this is an issue for you.


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